As I write this, I am looking out the window to another 50-degree, so-so winter day. But I don’t care because to me, March means one big positive for my mental health – the no-good, rotten, very bad days of winter are almost at an end. And even though spring isn’t “officially” here yet (at least not according to the calendars I looked up), I’m an early adopter of spring because of what it represents and what it can mean for our mental health.
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Modifying My Approach to Therapy
I’ve been to…a decent number of therapists over the years, and though I’ve found short-term success with a few, I’ve never been able to find long-term success. Part of that is the transitions I’ve made in life (high school to college, and then college to post-grad can make that difficult), but part of it is also that I had no long-term goals with therapy. I didn’t always know what I was doing with therapy, but I few years ago I made a goal for myself to create a more sustainable and reliable approach to therapy, and I’m proud to say I’m close to achieving it!
Continue readingTeenagers and Mental Health: A Q&A with Tilly’s Life Center
Mental health is important for everyone, but it’s especially important to spotlight teenagers and mental health. For today’s post, I was able to talk with Monica Utley, the Executive Director of Tilly’s Life Center. Located in Irvine, California, Tilly’s Life Center teaches life skills to teenagers that build confidence, inspire compassion, and encourages adolescents to pursue their dreams. Thank you to Monica for taking the time to answer my questions!
Continue readingFive Ways to Improve Your Relationship With Gratitude
Since this week is Thanksgiving in the US, I’m thinking a lot about the word gratitude. Being in the mental health space, I heard this word quite often. One of the most common tips for people dealing with depression centers around finding gratitude in our lives. There are many ways that people can find gratitude (and I hope to make a post about that in the near future!), but what isn’t talked about as much is that people’s relationships with gratitude can be tricky. There’s a fine line to balance if we feel like we’re being forced to look on the ‘bright side’ if we’re struggling to cope with mental illness. That’s why, before I reflect more on this word and what it means for me, I want to share some of the ways that you can improve the way you view gratitude and your relationship with this tricky concept.
Continue readingTime for an Appreciation Post!
A few months ago marked four years of My Brain’s Not Broken and I will be honest – I did a terrible job of marking this milestone. Like many other people, 2021 has felt like a whirlwind of a year, and it’s felt almost impossible to keep up with everything. Every day brings tasks to accomplish and challenges to overcome, and if you don’t stop and look at the bigger picture, you miss some things. So I thought it was about time I got back around to sharing an appreciation post – for the many wonderful people who read this blog, and the amazing things I’ve experienced from sharing my mental health journey for the last four-plus years.
Continue readingWhat Do I Do With My Emotions?
Part of living with depression and anxiety means that sometimes, my emotions are…heightened. I don’t always know the reasoning behind it, but there are a lot of emotions I feel more intensely than I’d like to feel. I know a part of this is my empathetic nature, part of it is life and part of it is just in my personality, but it can be tricky. I don’t always know what to do with my emotions – and in some situations, this can get in the way of being mentally healthy.
Continue readingFocusing on What’s Effective for Mental Wellness
When I write about mental health, I often use the word effective to talk about a certain technique or method that I’m researching or using. I’ve started to use this word more and more in the past few years, and it’s become one of the biggest ways I’ve measured mental wellness and how I manage mental health challenges. By putting a focus on how effective things are, I’ve been able to prioritize my mental health in a way I hadn’t been able to do before. Here’s why that’s important.
Continue readingSuicide Prevention Awareness Month 2021
TW/CW: This post discusses suicide.
Every year on My Brain’s Not Broken, I write posts and share information about Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. Held every September in the United States, Suicide Prevention Awareness Month is a month dedicated to awareness and advocacy about suicide and suicide prevention. Though awareness months exist in many forms and for many reasons, I believe that there is something unique about Suicide Prevention Awareness Month that should continue to demand attention. We know that suicide is a public health issue, and the pandemic is one more reason to push for more education and awareness around suicide prevention.
Continue readingThe Trouble With Being on Autopilot
I’m currently making my way out of a months-long mental funk, and things have felt a little off. That’s not to say that I’ve been struggling too much or things are unbearable. But sometimes you end up in a bit of a funk, and if that affects your mental health it can take some time to climb out of that hole. This time, I realized one of the main reasons I ended up in this funk was that I was on autopilot when it came to my mental health. Though being on autopilot has its benefits with getting through our day-to-day activities, it can also contribute to negatively affecting our mental health.
Continue readingHow Mental Health Challenges Can Lead to Success
You know, it hasn’t even been two months since I wrote about how amazing Naomi Osaka is for looking out for her mental health, and here we are again. Our hero this time? Simone Biles, the most decorated American gymnast of all-time. Putting aside the fact that Biles doesn’t owe us anything (and in fact, has already given us more than we deserve), her decision to withdraw also shows us how important our mental health is – and how severe the consequences can be when we ignore it.
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My Brain's Not Broken 