Saturday Morning Sip N’ Share: Mental Health

It’s Saturday morning y’all! How are you doing today? I hope you’re doing well. Part of the reason I’m asking is because today I’m going to chat with you about mental health. Did you know that your mental health is important? The mental health of those around you is important, too. And while this is a topic that should be talked about year-round, we’re getting to that time of the year when we should be checking on people to make sure they’re doing okay.

Got your cup of coffee? Good! I hope you’ve got a blanket, too, because it’s a little chilly this morning. Now get cozy, and let’s get to chatting!

When Mental Health Affects The Kids

It’s probably no secret by now that I’m a big advocate for talking about one’s mental state of being. Even though it’s 2023 there’s still this horrible stigma associated with mental health and talking about your own state of mind. I’m no stranger to therapy or antidepressants. Both have been part of my life off and on for 10 years now.

But now that I have kids of my own I’m teaching them to be open about their own mental health. They know it’s okay to talk about it when me whenever they want or need to.

Quite candidly, my kids are one of the main reasons that I picked mental health as my topic for the week. Let me tell you why…

For one, my oldest battles mental health and neurodiversion daily. She’s got anxiety, she has sensory issues that make it challenging to do a lot of things, and she’s very introverted. I can tell when she’s dealing with a hardship, but not everyone can. A couple of weeks ago she decided that her extracurriculars were just too much at the time. She took the day off from one of her activities so that she could rest.

Was I mad? Absolutely not! I’ll admit that I was a little shocked when I saw her get off of the bus that day. But I also smiled. My girl knew that things were just too much that day, and she decided to put herself first.

My youngest also put herself first recently. She decided to drop out of Tae Kwon Do. Although I struggled with the decision at first, I later realized that it was the best. No, my kids can’t decide everything for themselves. But when going to an activity causes stress and everyone to feel worse instead of better, it ultimately ends up being about what the kid needs and not what the parent wants.

My Own Struggles As of Late

So I’ve been in therapy consistently for a little over two years now (I think?). When I moved to Charlotte last year, I made a point to find a therapist for myself pretty much right away. Since then I’ve worked through a bout of depression and my own insecurities around this blog/ my work. But recently my therapist and I decided to start exploring a new side of me.

Confession: It has been discovered that I’m not the most emotional person. I think with my head and my gut, but my emotions don’t usually sway my thinking. And that’s because often times I’m kind of cold or numb to most of what I’m going through.

I was kind of shocked when I first heard this theory. But the more I thought about it and how I react to things, the more I was like, “Man….I really don’t get emotional/show emotion very often.” It was like getting slapped and yet excitedly solving a mystery all at the same time.

And while I continue down the path of once again finding my emotions, I also have had to force myself lately to slow down and just think. It’s mostly been for the sake of my blog, and of course, my own sanity. As I’ve taken a step back lately I’ve had some realizations about what I need to do and what I need to stop doing (I also touched on this in another post). It’ll be good for me, the content I produce and for y’all, too.

How Is Your Mental Health?

How is your mental health lately? I’m being dead serious when I ask you this question. I want to know because I care about your well-being. If you want to comment and tell me, please do! Not comfortable with that much vulnerability? Shoot me an email. I truly want to know how you are doing.

Take a minute and check on those around you, too. Asking someone about their mental health can literally be the difference between life and death for some people.

I hope you all have an amazing October weekend. Thank you for being here with me for another Sip n’ Share. Y’all are truly the best!

Until next time…

Meg

Just remember, there are resources and people out there that are ready, waiting and wanting to help you through tough times. Find all of the information that you need about the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline here, and never be afraid or ashamed to call.