Reblogged: Don’t let people talk you out of your happiness.

This post by the awesome Dr. Andrea Dinardo meant a lot to me, and features a message that many people need to hear. I’m still learning to accept that what makes me happy means going against the grain, and that’s okay. Take a minute and check it out!

Thriving Under Pressure

I love you just the way you are.

If you are lucky enough to find joy in the course of a day.. keep it to yourself..

At least until you find the courage to radiate, illuminate, and enjoy your life.

No matter how. No matter when.

Skip through the streets. Watch netflix on repeat. Eat kraft dinner. Swing in the park. Start a blog!

Whatever it is that makes you levitate, makes your heart skip a beat.

Whatever it is that makes you smile, makes you giggle, makes you dance in the streets.

Don’t let people talk you out of your happiness.

The world needs your joy. The universe needs your light.

It is time to silence the happiness critics in your life.

At least in your mind. Forever in your heart.

We all need your unique, quirky brand of happiness.

Now. More than ever. Be brave. Stand tall.

I love…

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Reblogged: That Awesome Time I Ran Out Crying

FINALLY sharing a post by my friend Sharon Yvonne at Curious Queendom. This epic post is just what you need to hear if you’ve ever made a mistake in your life. Oops, guess what, that’s all of us! Sharon Yvonne is strong and she’s got it goin’ on so check out her blog.

Curious Queendom

When I was a kid, well teenager, actually like 2-years ago, I was a serial hider of mistakes/imperfections. You may think that I’m talking about big mistakes, but no, the mistakes were silly, like a-hole-in-my-sock silly. The idea of someone being behind me when I tripped could send me looking over my shoulder every few seconds and scanning the ground for all those devious cracks and rocks.

Needless to say, big mistakes and glaring imperfections could break me down completely. I remember, about 3 years ago, I was having the second-to-worst week of my life (yes, I can definitively say that). I was going through a lot. I was lost in my own head 90% of the time. I remember getting lost during conversations and having to guess what my appropriate response should be when the conversation had obviously paused for my input.

Anyway, during this week, there was class…

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Reblogged: Plague time & the merciful

This meaningful piece by The Feathered Sleep compares depression to other stigmatized illnesses of the past…and gives the reader a call to action at the end. “Mercy comes often / from personal suffering.” A moving read, check it out!

Reblogged: Dear Corporate America

I can’t resist reblogging another amazing post today. This one is a letter to Corporate America signed a person living with mental illness. If you have ever struggled with employment due to mental illness, as I have (and even if you haven’t), take a look at this eloquent post from A Journey With You-Living With Schizophrenia.

A Journey With You

Dear Corporate America,

I am writing to you to inform you of my desire to work for your company. Let’s get one thing out of the way first, I have a mental illness. Why do I think you should hire someone with a mental illness? You say that you like people who can think outside of the box and that is a strength you are looking for. Well, those of us with a mental illness can easily and quite naturally think outside of the box. In fact, some of us have even experienced different realities and may be able to put a twist or a spin on that problem you are having that you never even imagined.

You mention that you value creativity. Most people with a mental illness are creative in one form or another. They haven’t proven it yet, but there have been several studies conducted trying to…

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Reblogged: That “Thing”…

Mighty powerful message from my friend M_McKeen at In Silence We Suffer, all in a neat 181 words!

In Silence We Suffer

You know that “thing” you really want to do?

That dream that brings you a moment of joy every time you think about it, but you’re scared of what will happen if you commit to it.

That person you really want to talk to, but you keep putting it off, as you’re worried they’re too busy to talk to you.

That love that you need to express, but you fear that if you did, things would never be the same again.

My advice would be to give it a go. Regret is a horrible thing.

Everyday thousands upon thousands of people all over the world wake up for the last time. Many of whom did not realise. We all have plans for the future. We all think about what our lives will be like when we’re 30, 50 or 80 years of age, but many of us don’t get to…

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Reblogged: Got Hope? (Hint: It looks a lot like weeding…)

This is one the most powerful pieces of writing I’ve come across in a long time. Leslie of Suicide Survivors writes about finding hope after suicide with unimaginable insight and even beauty. You’ll be glad you decided to read it! Thanks Leslie for permission to reblog.

suicidesurvivors

As a guest-poster, Josh Rivedal also invited me to guest-post on his blog, too.  I feature a ‘teaser’ on his blog (http://www.joshuarivedal.com/blog.html) for today’s story.  Today’s post is about hope lost and eventually, hope regained.

When I was 15, I lost my mom to suicide. Despite the profound loss of my mother, the fallout with some family members afterwards, and the feeling that my world had completely upended, I still had ambition. Even with the sense of betrayal and the long-gnawing fear of possibly ending up like my mom, I felt myself moving forward on a trajectory that whispered softly in my ear: “history is not destiny”. I stuck to my goals: I went to college, I traveled, I found a city in which to live that felt like home (3000 miles away), I went to grad school and became a professional social worker which I’d felt was my calling…

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