I think you have to want it bad enough to overcome addiction. I couldn't let these pills go, even after I hit rock bottom. And then I found yoga. That's when everything changed. I get it though —the process of recovery is stressful on its own, and without your usual means of coping, it’s really easy to become overwhelmed. So, here are three ways yoga helps me stay grounded.
Category: Mental Health Challenges
When You’re Depressed: It’s Easy to Isolate But Here’s Why You Shouldn’t
My bedroom is comfortable. I'm protected. No one can judge me for my irrational insecurities. No one can make me feel inferior. But is this living? I think not. Yes, it may feel safe. But when did safety ever merit any growth? Never. The thing is, there are ways to break the cycle and ease your depression symptoms. Here are three.
When We Have Our Health, We Have Everything: How CBD Helps Me Every Day
There are some days when I can't muscle enough energy to leave the house. There are weeks when it hurts to simply get out of bed. As the months go by, I don't understand why my insides hate me. Then I found CBD oil. That's when everything changed. I say this because lately, I have more energy. I'm worrying less and socializing more. My illnesses no longer define me —despite the obstacles staring at me in the face. When it's all said and done, CBD helps me every day. Here are nine ways CBD can help you too.
As Katy Perry Once Said, I Don’t Negotiate with Insecurities: So Let’s Battle for Some Sanity
College graduation is upon me along with my sensible attempts to get the good girl back. Except this chick was severely addicted to opioids. I was literally doing about 31 pills a day. But I thought if I could simply leave, then I could get better. I was living my life through the saying, out of sight, out of mind. So I pack my bags, give my apartment key back to my landlord, and try to start over, again. Destination —sunny Florida. Things started off great but I was about to learn; wherever you go, there you are. And eventually, I find myself addicted all over again. So I'll ask you one more time, who's ready to battle for some sanity? I hope you say yes.
Just Keep Swimming: How to Stay Afloat When You’re Sinking From Self-Doubt
In my last blog post, I discussed how I’m trying to swim through life with multiple mental illnesses but I can’t even float. It feels like I’m sinking with nothing to stop me but me. And so, I pretend everything is okay. And if you're like me, you want to feel normal but maybe you just don't know how. Well, here are three mental health treatment options that can bring you back to the person you were always meant to be.
I’m Drowning: How Mental Health Issues Affect My Ability to Swim Through Life
I don’t remember when, but at some point, I realized what I was feeling and going through was not normal nor healthy. It was hard to admit that I was drowning. But, if I was going to get help, if I was going to feel happy again and be able to stay afloat, I needed to admit that something was wrong. I was not okay.
Nothing Tastes as Good as Skinny Feels: What It’s Really Like Living with an Eating Disorder
This disease is not solely based on the pursuit to “look beautiful" —for those who have some type of eating disorder, it's so much more than that. Honestly, it’s as if you're in an abusive relationship. One minute it’s spewing hateful thoughts about you and the next it’s apologetically, promising that if you listen to what it says you will achieve happiness. One thing I always wish people knew about living with this type of mental illness is that it casts a shadow on everything in your life, no matter how small it may seem from the outside world. So, this is what it's really like to live with an eating disorder —at least from my perception.
5 Suggestions for Type One Diabetics: How To Run Errands Like a Boss
I figured other diabetics may be fighting to carry on with their day-to-day world while managing this life-changing illness. So, if you're wondering how to run errands or basically do anything outside of the house, I'm here to give you five suggestions. Because you're more of a boss than you give yourself credit for.
Because It’s Not Selfish: 5 Self-Care Tips to Smile Like You Mean It
Let's face it. Sometimes we are what's making us miserable. We just can't stop thinking about how so-and-so wronged us, or how our life didn't turn out as we hoped. Negative thought processes —such as worrying, self-judgment, and fear of rejection —only keep us more miserable. But if there are outside factors that make us so miserable, there have to be others that will make us happy, right? Yes. Here are five self-care tips that can help you make it without faking it.
Chronic Pain & Depression 101: When Others Can’t See Your Invisible Illness But You Feel It Everywhere
Just about everyone gets hurt from time to time. When you cut your finger or pull a muscle, pain is your body's way of telling you something is wrong. Once the injury heals, you stop hurting. Sounds simple enough, right? Yes. Except chronic pain is different. Whereas acute pain is a normal sensation that alerts us to possible trauma, chronic pain persists —for months or even longer. If you have chronic pain and depression, well —that burden may grow even heavier. The good news is, these disorders are not inseparable. Here's what you need to know.
Because You Can Get Better Too: How I Battled Opioid Withdrawal
I think I stayed on painkillers for as long as I did because I was afraid of experiencing withdrawal. I think that's why most people stay stuck. Detoxing off opioids was in fact, the hardest thing I ever had to do (and the greatest). I remember counting my stash the night before just to make sure I had enough to not get sick the next day. It really is a vicious cycle. You know you shouldn't but how can you not? So whether you're a loved one of an addict, currently addicted, or in recovery, these seven therapeutic remedies can connect the dots so that you can battle opioid withdrawal and actually win.
It’s Okay to be Afraid: 10 Signs You May Have an Actual Anxiety Disorder
Maybe you have no reason to feel anxious. Or, maybe, it's all just too much to handle. The thing is, it's okay to feel your feelings —just don't move in. There are ways to ease the pain of anxiety, and eventually eliminate it. But before you can actually work toward fixing it, you must identify why you do the things you do. This is what you need to know.
The Little Black Book of Poems: Blade
Sadness sweeps through your buzzing brain, as you count what pills are left in your stash. 19. You’d have enough for today and tomorrow, but in all reality, you needed more. Tonight though, you had other plans.
The Little Black Book of Poems: Truth or Dare
Morals. What’s that? I was a junkie with survival on my mind. Sigh —there was nothing I wouldn’t do to get high. At the time, this girl had no name, even though I had a shit ton of pain. I know it makes no sense, but that's how I liked it. I know it's not fair; so I try not to care. Anyone up for a round of truth or dare?
The Little Black Book of Poems: The Storm
There would be no real way of knowing then that I was about to create a storm that would soon ravage all in its line of vision. Everything, my world —up in smoke. Just when I thought I had conquered it all, when things couldn’t get any worse, I found myself lost, alone, and addicted.