Reflecting - Mental Health Day 2023

Happy World Mental Health Day, folks!

I think a lot about my childhood and how my anxiety was affecting me even then. As they say, hindsight is 20/20, and it seems so obvious that I was struggling. The way I interacted with other kids, my relationship with food—how did anyone miss the signs?

Mental health was not talked about in the early 2000’s. I’m sure there have been people doing incredible work in the field for decades before I even came along, paving the way for the doctors, therapists, social workers, and other professionals to continue the work to this day. Unfortunately, in my small town, mental health was not a topic of conversation, unless it was in the context of a criminal or terrorist being mentally ill, the reasoning that was (and still is, frustratingly) used to explain the crimes committed.

Over the last decade or so, mental illness has been destigmatized a great deal, and it’s been incredible to see. I’ve written a lot about how I started to understand my brain and be comfortable talking about my anxiety by reading other people’s experience on social media, and I will forever be grateful for those people being brave enough to speak out.

This blog and all the other places I post online is a way to pay those people’s impact forward. It’s also my way of becoming the person I needed when I was growing up. I needed to hear someone say that it was okay to be themselves, no matter how shy or anxious they were. I needed to see someone be open about their struggles, to show me that I wasn’t alone.

I can’t go back in time and change little me’s experience, but I can do my part to make sure others know they aren’t alone in how they feel.

If you or someone you know is struggling with their mental health, there are many hotlines and resources available. You deserve help, and there is help out there for you.

You can find these resources here: https://nami.org/help

—Abbie