YOU ARE NOT ALONE - A companion online community discussion board for The Mental Illness Happy Hour podcast with Paul Gilmartin

Hey everyone,

So I'm making it a goal to slowly pull my life back together this week (I've made small, more manageable goals for myself to break it down). Would any of you guys like to join my attempt? Of course it won't be perfect, but putting in the effort to combat anxiety and getting into the swing of living life is the main point. Any takers?

Michael

Hey, Michael -- I'm trying to get out of the house more. I can stay in/on my bed all day. What are your issues?

I'm doing the same. I've stopped eating fast food as it makes me feel awful and both is used as a crutch and causes guilt. Instead I'm making food for myself. As a perfectionist I'm not worried about making food super healthy. Anything is better than fast food. I'm also getting out of the house when feeling down instead of burrowing down in the couch.

Love setting small goals because it's so unusual to me. I used to think if I couldn't eat perfectly might as well eat burgers. If I could exercise an hour a day it was a waste.

Hey Michael. I can't promise this week--but maybe the next few weeks I might HAVE to make changes because I'm back in the school system, even if it's just doing online classes.

One thing I want to do is take walks every other day; it would be everyday, but once when taking one of these attempts at exercise, I realized I had ventured out on a Friday and got unnecessarily annoyed/anxious by how many people were around me. Since I have an open and flexible schedule, it would probably be good to start these walks on weekdays around the morning or early afternoon. I don't mind joggers so much as I am intensely annoyed by teenage/young girls gossiping about other young girls and then unwittingly following me down by the river (which is what happened on a Friday last time I tried to do this--I don't like to be sent back to high school when I'm just trying to enjoy the scenic view of the river!). I just need some alone time, fresh air/sunshine, to be able stretch my legs and get my blood pumping, but I also notice I get very sore/tired when I venture out on one of these walks, so every-other-day is more suited to me.

Changing your diet is a really awesome goal. I'd like to work towards that but I realize I have a few more steps before I can get there since I have trouble just making ramen at the right temperature for the noodles. For me it'd be more a step towards independence since I know if I ever want to move out of my parent's house I'll need to be able to do more than order/eat out every day. So I'll probably stick to the walking.

Good luck to you! Hope it goes well. Update your progress, failures and successes both welcome.

I think taking small steps yields great results. I've learned to be more aware of my feelings, and that has helped me deal with my anxiety/depression. I'm glad you are taking positive steps, because I believe that we have the power to overcome whatever state we are in. I've noticed yesterday that I choose depression out of boredom... When I don't have anything to be anxious about or am not forcing myself to be productive (which I've consciously stopped doing), I turn to depression because that's basically all I know and I feel comfortable there. How fucked up is that? The longer you are depressed, the more it will set in and create a home inside your head. I wouldn't have noticed this subconscious shift that I would take if I wasn't trying to be more aware. I've learned growing up that my feelings weren't important and didn't count, so as I became an adult, I treated myself like my parents did. But our feelings are so important and deserving of attention. I was always prodded to be an excellent kid in school and extra-curricular activities, so I've totally based my identity on productivity and excellence. I've neglected my feelings all throughout my life and forced myself to do everything out of expectations from society and parents. So my goal is to treat myself the way I should've been treated. Hope you are pulling your life back together!