May Provider Blog

We may be closed for services right now, but our team hasn’t stopped working! Read on to learn more about Taylor’s take on the pandemic and how she’s coping.

 

May is National Mental Health Awareness Month. During the pandemic, focusing on mental health is more important than ever. If you’ve had the chance to interact with me and get me talking, I may have mentioned that I have diagnosed OCD and have been working on eating disorder recovery for a little over a year now, as well having anxiety and depression for the better part of my life. I am not someone who is afraid to talk about these things, but the stigma of mental illness and a lack of understanding is still something I find myself seeing in modern day society. 

 

Luckily, I do work at a very understanding place, and it does help that my job is something that actively reminds me to practice self care. However, right now while I have been holed away in my house, practicing self care and keeping my mental illness in check has been something I’ve had to rediscover. So, I thought I would share a few of the habits and tricks I’ve worked on to keep myself feeling good during this crisis!

 

As someone who thrives on schedules and structure, and doesn’t very much like change, having my whole schedule thrown out the window was VERY rough. To keep myself from spending all day in bed on instagram or playing animal crossing, I created a rough schedule that I stuck to in order to recreate a routine. Routines are often important to create a sense of stability, and can be helpful for people who suffer from depression or other mental illness. Part of my routine is actually ending my night with my skincare regimen! 

 

Another habit I’ve tried to cultivate over the course of the last two months is mindfulness, and working on meditation. As someone who has anxiety, finding a way to quiet my mind and not get frustrated by my thoughts is important, especially now when it’s very easy to get into a rabbit hole of “what ifs”. As someone who kind of LOATHES meditation, I’ve actually found sitting and trying to just notice my thoughts and then allow those thoughts to pass has been great! I’ve especially enjoyed the “Leaves on a Stream” script for meditation. 

 

Along with those two habits, I’ve also worked on avoiding too much media exposure, and instead replacing it with things that make me happy. I watch a lot of Bon Appetit youtube videos, and people who are participating in Me Made May (a month of garment sewing/knitting and wearing what you’ve made). I’ve also worked to cultivate my hobbies like sewing, bread baking, and gardening has been lovely because they have physical positive outcomes I can share with others!

 

Most importantly, with any mental health related issue, it’s been incredibly helpful for me to reach out. Making sure I am talking with friends, and spending time with people I love through zoom, or facetime, or even playing an online Dungeons and Dragons game, has been so important for not feeling alone in all this. It also helps that I see my therapist weekly, and am able to unpack what I am feeling and in turn she helps me with tools to process my emotional response to everything going on. 

 

If you’ve been having a harder time than normal during this crisis, know you aren’t alone, and there are people who can help. Reach out to friends and family, but also your health care providers! My favorite podcaster, Marcus Parks, always says “Mental Illness is NOT your fault, but it is your responsibility”. Now more than ever, there is no shame in asking for help, and taking the first steps in recovery!