Welcome to Mental Health Wellness Check

Hey!

How's it going?

Are y'all doing okay? Been feeling down at all? Is it hard to get out of bed?

Have you been feeling great? Have you started a new hobby? Or have you lost interest in things you used to love to do?

Are you distracted easily? Sleeping okay? Having any weird or vivid dreams that you want to share? 

I know I'm having a nightmare when the fluffy pink velociraptors with Valley Girl accents show up. A week ago, I had a dream where my mom gave me a very friendly tiger instead of my very fluffy cat and I didn't know what to do with a very friendly tiger that wanted tons of snuggles.

I have weird dreams.

Have you gone out and seen your friends? Made any new friends? Had a falling out you need to talk to someone about?

Are you obsessing over something?

I'm still thinking about the post I wrote last week.

Instead of taking some time to carefully compose what I wanted to say over the course of a couple of days - I impulsively word vomited some thoughts (that I still don't have a conclusive answer for) into the Interweb. 

Memo to me - don't do that again.

Eventually, I'll get over this angsty obsession and find something else to worry about.

Which reminds me of a saying one of my yoga teachers from New Jersey liked to say: "worrying is just payment for a debt you never owed."

At least I think that's what they used to say. I don't have a perfect memory - no one does. But I remember them encouraging me to let go of my worries and focus on the moment. 

I do find myself feeling happier when I slow down to just live in the moment. Today, I spotted a flowering bush with half a dozen swallowtail butterflies flitting about. I stopped and took a couple of pictures, appreciating their graceful movements and fluttering wings. The air was thick, smelling of campfires and newly blossomed flowers. Though the sun was setting, it had a few rays left to warm my skin. A few paces away, two monarch butterflies played tag in the tall grass.

One of the pictures I took.

That was a moment where I let all the background noise in my head fade away and I felt very happy.

Another picture I took. Does anyone know what kind of flower?

Have you had any moments like that recently?

On Friday, I went to the doctor's for my annual exam. I was nervous going. The pandemic hadn't been kind to my physical and mental health. But it's important to go. So that's what I did.

Part of my visit included a screening for depression. 

That was new. I know that a lot of studies have come out about how the past year and a half has wrecked a lot of people's mental health and depression is on the rise. I answered the questions honestly and had a conversation with my doctor about options to keep my mental health in check. She had a lot of information and happily provided me with resources. 

I'm glad depression, anxiety, and other mental health ailments are being taken seriously. I've been working on my mental health for a few years now, so I've become a bit blasé to my problems. But I remember how difficult it was to take that first step. I almost didn't. It took me crying in the car with my aunt on the phone for me to understand that I had to. My aunt had to help me make the appointment to see the doctor. 

It's okay to be nervous about admitting that you need help. It's intimidating to answer the doctor's questions. But without honesty, doctor's can't (or won't) help you.

So, take a moment. See how you're doing. Don't be ashamed if you're having trouble. It's okay to get help. It's okay to go to therapy.

How are you doing?

If you enjoyed this post (or it really pissed you off) please like, share, and/or leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers and I hope y'all like hearing from me.

Until next week.