motivation

Different Techniques I Have Been Trying | Mental Health Monday

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These past few months have been rough for me – which is why I was absent for a while. I felt like I was in a hole that I could not climb out of.

I slept. A lot. I would either wake up, go to the gym or work then come home and get back in bed. It was a very depressing cycle.

It got to the point where even my friends started noticing something was wrong with me. Always asking if I was OK, and if they could do anything to help; in which I always replied no.

The thing about depression is a lot of times the person who has it does not know why they have it. To my knowledge, there was not something that triggered it a few months ago. It just happened. I have a chemical imbalance in my brain and sometimes the depression just hits me like a freight train.

But finally – finally – I have been able to pull myself out of the hole I fell into. For the past two weeks, I have been doing quite well actually. I have been trying different techniques that I am going to talk about below.

At the start of the week, I have started writing out what all I want to get done by the end of the week.

On a sticky note, I write everything I want to do through the week. This list will usually include posting YouTube videos and blogs, self-care, finishing a book, movie, or tv show, and things I want to do around the house (such as clean certain areas or plant flowers). I then try to at least mark one of those off my list every day. The days I get the most done is Monday through Wednesday so I try to get as much done on those days as I can.

My best friend has started a rewarding system, and it’s working.

It all started with me wanting to take more pictures. He said that if I took xx amount of photos then he would reward me with a king-sized chocolate bar, which is my weakness. My brain then took that and ran with it. It also helps that my best friend believes in me and motivates me. The second thing we talked about is me posting YouTube videos again. This time the reward would be him coming to visit me. After not posting in so long because I was not motivated to do so, I have posted two videos in a week and a half. My goal is to post one or two videos a week.

I have been getting more fresh air.

After the gym, I have been going to a nearby outside track and walking a couple miles. I think the fresh air really helps clear my head. Fresh air is something I have severely been lacking in the winter. I truly believe in seasonal depression.

I have not been motivated all the time, but I still force myself to start.

The biggest problem I have is starting. Editing a YouTube video sucks, but when I start doing it, I’m focused on finishing it. The same thing with cleaning, reading, writing, exercising. I used to wait for motivation to strike, but now I am just forcing myself to start. That’s when I get motivated; plus my best friend encouraging me helps too. For me, motivation comes after – not before.

Do you have some things that help you stay out of a funk? Stay/get motivated?

Finding Motivation Again|Mental Health Monday #6

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2020 has definitely been a weird and long year. The events of the world has changed our lives forever.

I went into 2020 being confident that this year was going to be MY year. My year actually started out with an unusual amount of panic attacks. Honestly, I understood why I was because I was undergoing a lot of stress with my personal life and the fact that I was graduating in a few months with no idea what I wanted to do with my life.

After I graduated, my mental health went further downhill. The only things I did with my days is go to work, go to the gym, and watch Netflix – not necessarily in that order. You would have thought that going to the gym would have improved my mood, but the gym high did not last. I had been coming home and watching Netflix for hours until I went to bed.

Even though I was struggling for six months of the year,  I finally came out of my slump a week ago. Depression is weird. I can go into a depressive episode for no reason, and I can also suddenly come out of one. I told myself that I needed to be more productive, and I finally did something about it.

I’ve started doing a checklist again. I feel so accomplished when I mark something off of my checklist. This past week I have been trying to get at least half of my checklist done before I turn on Netflix. This will typically put my at starting Netflix sometime after five o’clock. Below is an example of what my typical list consists of.IMG_2455.PNG

I’m hoping this motivation stays for at least a little bit. I’m going a week strong.

Wish me luck.

Mental Health Monday #5

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The main thing I struggle with is motivation. My mind is really good at convincing me to not do something even though I know I would regret not doing it later. This happens frequently with schoolwork, getting up early, going out, working out, and meditating. I know these things will make me feel better in the long run, but I still find it hard to get myself to do it.

I did have a good week of self-care. I was pretty consistent with my morning/night routine, being productive, meditating, and even exercising.

This week is my spring break, and I am excited to enjoy my time out of school. I won’t be lazy though! I am mostly going to be working this week so I’ll have a little extra money next paycheck. I do have a ‘Spring Break 2020 Bucket List’ that I will be posting about soon. I am still going to be productive even though I am on a break.

I know that sometimes doing nothing is a form of self-care too. The only thing is that when I do nothing, even for a day, it starts to take a negative toll on my mental health. I need fresh air and positive people at least once in a 12 hour period.

These next couple of months are going to be rough. I am graduating in exactly two months. I am so scared. I am not going to get everything done. I also don’t know what I am going to do after graduation, but I am not as worried about that.

I just hope I stay sane.

I’ll update you on my sanity next Monday.

Mental Health Monday #4

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My mental health has not been good, but I am finally doing something about it. I have come to realize this past week that I do not take care of myself enough. My motivation has been almost nonexistent. I knew what things would help my mental health, but I did not have the willpower to do them.

I have decided that to try and motivate myself this week by vlogging my week of self-care. Self-care comes in many different forms. I picked out a few for this week, and I plan on doing several each day. I am making a YouTube video out of it because I am hoping it will keep me continuing to do some of the same self-care every day. Plus, I haven’t posted a YouTube video in a while.

My plan for this week is to do my morning/night routine, exercise, meditate, mindfully drink coffee, drink more water, take a walk outside, jam to music, and be productive so I won’t be stressed out later.

Today I have done quite a bit of my self-care. I got up early this morning and went to the gym. I meditated afterward. I have drank more water, but not as much as I wanted to. I will get better about it tomorrow. I mindfully drank coffee. It was nice. I was even extremely productive today! I got some schoolwork done, and I got A LOT of my internship work done. Today was actually a down day for me, but I still pushed myself to be better.

The way I feel is not going to change overnight, but I am super excited to see how this week goes. I will, of course, continue doing more self-care in the future, but making a video is certainly a much needed push.

Mental Health Monday #1

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On Instagram, I follow the hashtag “#Mentalhealthmatters” because I love reading motivational quotes and people’s stories. I was scrolling through my Instagram earlier when I see a guy that had ‘Mental Health Monday #2’ as the start of his caption. (His insta is nickfituk). This post struck me differently than the others. Every Monday he is going to post a blog about mental health, and that is what I decided I wanted to do too. (You should join in on Mental Health Monday also!)

Mental health is a part of everyone. Sometimes it can be good mental health, but then sometimes it can be bad. I’ve dealt with a lot of bad mental health in my life. I don’t always know why it is there. It just shows up in the middle of nowhere. Luckily, I think I am slowly getting out of an episode. I have been more productive and slightly happier these last few weeks. I think I mostly needed a break from school. I was severely isolating myself.

For 2020, my main goal is to take care of myself better. Sometimes I get so frustrated with  myself because I know things that would make me feel better, but I talk myself out of doing them anyway.

Two of the main things that improves my mood is exercise and meditation. Exercising has been a bit more difficult here lately because every time I run, I feel like passing out. I’ve been dealing with a sinus problem since November (and yes, I’ve been to the doctor). There are other workouts that I can still do, I am just still trying to force myself into a routine. I want to start getting up early and working out/meditating.

I am hoping writing this post motivates me to do better. I will update you on if it did or not next Monday!