I Hope This Helps
A few things that made me feel better recently
In my recent Poll-a-polooza, a whole bunch of you let me know you’d like advice just as much as you like personal stories. Well, unfortunately (especially since I myself created that poll and gave you all that option), I don’t have a lot of good advice to give.
The only advice I feel totally confident about is that what we need changes and will continue to change.
Hopefully, that explains why finding a new self care thing can feel like such a huge surprise. I’m continually shocked by what devastates me and what lifts me up. I used to have a therapist who told me every week just to, “notice,” what I was feeling and it only occurred to me recently that’s what she meant: pay attention, learn, pay attention again.
The seasonal depression’s hitting me hard this year, apparently, so while I impatiently await the arrival of my magic SAD lamp, here are some things that kept me out of bed this past week:
I invited a non-judgmental friend over for dinner. This encouraged me to go to the store, focus on a recipe, and clean up my apartment.
I cried in therapy. And exhausted myself, like a toddler.
I picked up the phone when someone called. When I’m in the thick of it, I fall into the habit of ignoring calls, texts, and emails and then getting super overwhelmed, vowing to get back to everyone before I do anything else (which never happens). So picking up the phone felt like a small victory and it was very helpful to listen to someone else talking for a while.
I decided to wear a uniform. This is gross, but honestly could be grosser! I have a black sweatshirt and sweatpants that look sort of put together because they match. While I was feeling extra shitty, I let myself be an outfit repeater so I didn’t have to worry about doing laundry or looking at myself in the mirror too much.
I made art for someone else. Painting calms my heart and distracts me from negative thinking. I couldn’t get my shit together enough to paint for painting’s sake, so I painted a friend’s dog as a present. That way, I concentrated on doing something for someone else AND I got to look closely at a cutie doggie picture for a few hours.
Online, I notice a lot of people giving advice as experts or as Totally Healed Enlightened Ones. I’m sharing this as someone who accidentally slept for 11 hours last night, so please take everything with a grain of Pink Himalayan Salt.
What helped you keep your head above water last week? If you’re okay with sharing, please comment or reply to this email!
Hope you’re doing okay!
Love Always,
Christina
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