Mental Health Mondays

What is it?

Mental Health Monday is something I started a few months ago to share different topics and illnesses within the umbrella of Mental Health! I talked about self-care, anxiety, body dysmorphia and more. All these posts can be found Sarah Strong fundraiser account on their instagram that I run, go check it out! I have now started posting on my personal instagram @empotter10 *shameless plug* for Mental Health Monday, about different mental health topics and personal stories about topics I think are important and am passionate about. I write out my captions every week and spend a lot of time thinking about how and what I want to say. I then follow that up with another post on @sarahstrongfundraiser to give more facts, tips and information about these topics in a more educational way, from credible sources and steps to take to identify and get help if needed.

I do this because I want to share knowledge and help people feel less alone. Also, I want to continue to dismantle the stigma surrounding Mental Health, which is the mission of the Sarah Strong Fundraiser.

I will post the first two weeks topics and the corresponding pictures, but moving forward I will have each week posted here will an expanded article and information on each topic. This will give me the opportunity to take a deeper dive into each topic, more so than I can currently do just on an instagram caption.

(these will keep coming every Monday 🤞🏼 hopefully)

Week 1: Stop that All or Nothing Thinking!

You’re life is not a failure if you didn’t workout today
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You’re not a failure for not sticking to your healthy eating plan for one meal or all the meals
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You’re not unlovable for failing in another romantic relationship
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You’re not going to have to spend forever social distancing and away from friends and family, you’ll get to take those trips 🤍
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I don’t know where we got this idea in our minds that everything has to be all or nothing in our lives
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That if our house, career, family and social lives were not all running smoothly at all times that it’s a complete failure
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Bad things happen, and if something is important to you, you can feel that pain and hurt if you fail, but we must try to keep the perspective that it’s not the end of it all
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I know for me personally, I have a habit of brushing aside victories because I expect a lot of myself, but I beat myself up for every single failure inside my head and I sometimes go to that all or nothing place of “I suck I should just quit.”
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That can be very harmful mentally. We ALL need to take a second and celebrate the victories, big or small
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& Cut yourself some damn slack if you don’t accomplish everything on the first try, in the first day, or even in the first month or year
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This isolation period is a great opportunity to get stuff done but you don’t need to overwhelm yourself and try to “win at quarantining” by baking 27 loaves of banana bread. You are not failing during this time if you aren’t as productive as others
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Reminder: The world is not ending. Everything that happens does not need to be all or nothing. Just let it be what it is. Feel it, experience it and then move on to the next thing. It’s either a victory to celebrate or a lesson to learn, to be better for the next time ⭐️
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#mentalhealthmonday #allornothingthinking #CBT #mentalhealthawareness #mentalhealthmatters #sarahstrong #itsokaynottobeokay

MY TIPS ⬇️
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1. Try to be self aware if you feel yourself going into all or nothing thinking
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2. Take a breath and remind yourself of the concrete and what you KNOW to be true. Sometimes this can be hard, come back to the simplest fact that you are breathing
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3. Keep reminding yourself of the facts. Not what your mind is trying to tell you, because it can and does play tricks on us
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4. Return to the all or nothing thoughts you were having and CHALLENGE THEM. A good rule is to think If you were speaking to a friend who was struggling with something, what would you tell them?

Week 2: Where does your Self-Worth lie?

Is it in your career?
In the possessions you own & things you can afford to buy?
Is it in your hobbies outside of work?
Is it in your appearance & how good you look or dress?
Is it in the people you know?
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Maybe you’re out of a job right now like I am. If our self worth is heavily based upon our careers, this time can be even tougher. It’s okay if that’s how you’re feeling now, but know that you are NOT your work. It is something you do
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I’m also not saying any one of these things is horrible to care about, but it’s never how we should define ourselves. Right now we have an opportunity to take a minute and think about how we view ourselves
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We can be passionate about our jobs, possessions, friends or hobbies, but none of those things should describe who we are as people, or define us if they falter, because surely they will at one point in our lives
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I am not basketball
I am not mental health
I am not my yearly salary or the car I drive
I am Emily and you are you
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Don’t let other people tell you who you are either. Whether it be bitchy for standing up for yourself or weak for forgiving someone. Whatever it may be that people press upon you, you don’t have to accept it. You are in control of you, and you get to decide who you want to be
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It’s pretty amazing that we can decide to be whoever we want to be in this world, but I think we should measure ourselves in how we would help each other in times of crisis, in how we listen and are there for those needing someone to hear them out, in how we can make others laugh when they really need it, how we can be loyal to friends and follow through on plans made, in how we can stand up for what is right.
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I challenge you to write down all the qualities of who you are as a person this week and where you place your self-worth
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It’s not cocky or boastful to know who you are as a person and be proud of it. It’s also OK if you don’t have it all figured out either, but maybe now is the time to start thinking about who you might want to be
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I am loyal. I am faithful. I am giving. I am loving. I am thankful.
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Who are you?