In an effort to give the Grits a boost, I've decided to participate in the November NaBloPoMo which means I've committed to post every day for the next 30 days. We'll see how that goes since I'm also posting on Empty Nest. Ha!Today's prompt (yes, they give you prompts in case you can't come up with a topic for 30 days IN A ROW INCLUDING WEEKENDS AND THANKSGIVING) is: When you're having a bad day with your mental health, what do you do to hep yourself?
That all depends on the level of the bad and whether or not I got ahead of it. If I am not lucky enough to get ahead of it, I have to let it run its course which usually involves a good bit of sadness. And, admittedly, a pity party or five.
The level of bad comes into play when I do get ahead of it. Which is most of the time as I try to remember that pity parties are a complete waste of time and effort. So, depending on the level of bad, here are 5 things I do to help myself with my mental health:
- Music. Loud and with earbuds. The genre depends on the level of the bad.
- Time-out. Yes, giving myself a time-out works wonders and gives me time to regroup. How? Either going to my room for quiet or outside on the deck to deep breathe and listen to nature. It really does help. To be honest with y'all, if I could be by myself all the time with the exception of holidays and special family times, I'm pretty sure I'd never have a bad mental health day again, EVER.
- Text a friend. If I need a way out with a laugh, I have a friend who is perfect for that. And no explanations are ever needed. We all need a friend like this.
- Taking the dog for a walk. Walking will take my mind off having a bad mental health day. Because I concentrate on how I don't want to walk. Ha!
- Watching television. But it has to be a sitcom. Unless my mental health day is sad instead of bad. Then it needs to be a tearjerker movie.
And there you have my first day.
What do y'all do to help yourself over a bad mental health day?
