An explanation as to why doing hours worth of exercise is so beneficial for mental health

Hey everyone! I know it's been a few months gone now since my last post on here. This was partly because I have been keeping myself occupied with work.

However, a more larger reason was because that I have been feeling increasingly overwhelmed over the past month, and I just haven't had the energy to make any posts on here. Both to do with life in general & work related stress.

Since all of that has been sorted, I'm feeling in a much better place to be back blogging again.

As the above title states, I have also been taking time out by spending a lot of time doing hours worth of exercise each day. The main reason for this, is actually because I'll be taking on an epic challenge for 3 days (starting from the 18th & finishing on the 21st of June). Hence, I've been spending every free bit of time during the day to exercise/train as much as possible for this upcoming challenge. I also like to think that the other reason for me doing all of this exercise is positively impacting my mental health too after all the stress I've been dealing with.

*The above picture was taken from one of my training sessions on top of Colley Hill, Surrey*

Going back a few years ago, I have made some posts talking about why exercising everyday is so beneficial for maintaining good mental health. And because I too, suffer with mental health issues time & time again over the years, I have found out for myself that exercising everyday really helps me to feel better, as well as clear my mind of negative stuff. 

Although, in my case, I love nothing more than go out walking for hours on end. I enjoy taking in the surroundings of nature, buildings & views when I walk past a viewing point on a hilltop. I also enjoy doing loop routes, country routes & long pavement routes from one location to another. I just love walking so much, that I can't help but do it everyday for not only to keep myself in good shape, but to gain positive energy!

In terms of this challenge, I'll be taking on the 3 Peaks Challenge with around 20 other people, in aid of the YMCA East Surrey. It involves climbing up the 3 biggest peaks in the UK: Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike & Snowden. Due to the intensity of this challenge, I had to increase the amount of hours I go out walking for. Not that I'm complaining though!

In all seriousness, going out exercising for even just an hour can make your mental health a whole lot better, as it just processes the surroundings of where you are walking, and erases everything else trapped in it. Since beginning my 3 Peaks training, I have grown a liking to walking through the countryside. And even spending just an hour walking in the countryside, being surrounding by nothing but nature & stunning views, can make your mental health feel a whole lot lighter. 

So for those who are constantly feeling on edge all of the time, and want to find a way to make that feeling disappear - Get out exercising!

 

*I began this post during the late hours of the 15/6, but actually got published during the early hours of the 16/6*  

How to unwind during the Christmas holidays

Happy Saturday everyone! Now that it's officially the Christmas holidays, it's also that time of year where I try to do my upmost to just chill out, unwind & focus on the being in the present moment. Especially where the Christmas period is all about spending time with the people you love.

As the above title states, I will be sharing some useful tips on how to unwind during the Christmas holidays, as this is an important time of year to take care of your mind & wellbeing, so you will be able to reset for the new year.

These tips are what personally helps me to unwind during the festive period, so my mind & wellbeing feel refreshed for the next year ahead. For anyone reading who find it difficult to unwind during the festive period, do at least a few of these tips to help you, as you too can feel refreshed & ready to tackle the next year ahead!

Go out for a walk once a day: 

I know I have droned on about this in my past blogs a lot of times a few years back, but walking is genially good for your physical & mental health combined. There is proven evidence that states that you must try to go out on a 30min walk everyday where & when possible, as 30mins will be enough time to get your happy endorphins up to a satisfactory level. I personally like to be out walking for a WHOLE DAY, as this gives me enough time to clear my mind of negative thoughts, as well as numb my mind from all of the negativity. Here are some useful resources: https://www.verywellhealth.com/walking-30-minutes-a-day-8748945 https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/walking-for-health/ 

Make some festive treats:

What better way to contribute to the festive cheer then to make festive treats! I love baking in my down time whenever I get the chance. I especially love baking cakes! It's a good way to occupy your time if you have some free time for a few hours during the daytime. Plus, there's no better rewarding feeling than eating your own treats afterwards!

Have regular communication with friends & family:

Many people will be stuck at home during the festive period, so this would definitely be a good & convenient time to keep in touch regularly with those you care about. Especially if they're working throughout the Christmas break, or if they're finding it hard to cope due to Christmas being their least favourite time of year.

Do something that you enjoy doing:

If you suddenly end up feeling bored, and have no idea what to do with yourself, just do something that that makes you happy. If you happen to have a continuous hobby, go for it for as long as you want to, as utilising your hobbies will help distract your mind from being stuck in the hellish trap, known as "boredom".

Enjoy the present moment:

During this time of year, it is important that you take each day as it comes, and to just simply enjoy the present moment. After all, it is important that you reflect on how you have intended on spending the Christmas break, as it only comes around once a year, and there's personally no better feeling than enjoying every moment on the fantastic things you are doing during the festive period. Especially getting to reflect on how fantastic it went after New Year!

As mentioned before, these are the tips that I personally find helpful on how to cope during the Christmas holidays, and hopefully it'll inspire you to do the same too.

I know that Christmas may not be everyone's favourite time of year, but how YOU choose to spend it by doing the things that YOU love doing, will make all the difference.

With that said, I'd like to take this moment to wish everyone reading this a Happy Christmas, and a Happy New Year, as I won't be back blogging on here until early next year.

If I had to sum up 2025 in just 1 word, it'll definitely be - Monumental.

I say this, as I've done SO many things all within a short space of 12 months. It feels more monumental even just thinking that I've done & achieved so many things within a short space of 12 months too. 

Whilst there may have been some downers in between (Especially over the past 3 months), it still doesn't undermine the fact that 2025 was a year full of successes!

Now, if y'all excuse me, I'm off to enjoy the remainder of this "monumental" year by doing what I enjoy doing, and allowing my mind to reset for the next year ahead. 

Over & out!🤚🏻

*I began this post on the 20/12, but didn't finish it until the 21/12*

The lighter side of SEMH

Hello everyone! Hope your week is getting off to a great start, as well as the first 6 days of October.

From the 1st - 3rd of October, I had the privilege to work 3 days at an independent SEMH school in Dorking. Although I didn't get offered a contract to work at the school, I enjoyed spending time with the pupils, as well as get to learn about how their SEMH needs impact their learning. 

This was where I got to see a more lighter side of SEMH, compared to the other SEMH school I worked at for 6 months.

My main inspiration for doing this post, was how blown away I was by seeing a completely different side of SEMH, as appose to the stereotypical disruptive behaviour, swearing & frequent deregulations.

The different side of SEMH included loads of politeness, wanting to engage in lessons & thriving on consistent routine.

Yes, I have seen very few deregulations whilst I was working there, but those deregulations will always be a part of SEMH kids, as this is their natural response to them being or finding something that is overwhelming them, and need to let out some energy to regulate themselves again. For example, taking a movement break.

I know I have mentioned this in a few previous SEMH posts whilst I was working at Grafham Grange, as I am continually putting this message out there for everyone reading to acknowledge (I suppose you can call me an SEMH activist at this stage).

As this is also an 'independent' school setting, the staff highly or fully expect all of their students to follow the structure & routine without needing any assistance. That being said, a majority of the pupils are capable of doing work on their own.

So, the morale of this post, is to understand that no SEMH person presents with the same behaviour. Especially in different school settings.

How having structure & consistency benefits SEMH pupils

Hello everyone! Hope you've all been doing okay.

Since my my last post on here, I've been keeping busy with my weekday job in an SEMH school. However, as of the 23rd of May, I no longer work at the school due to no longer being needed for the final term. (I was working in the Y11's class, but they are on study leave now, and will be leaving for good in 2 weeks time) And since I'm now currently off work until my agency calls me in to somewhere else, I've got some time to be productive on here.

As the above title states, I want to talk about structure & consistency benefitting SEMH pupils.

There are 2 reasons for this post: Firstly, there has been some major changes to the school. Secondly, I've seen the positive impact those changes have had on the pupils & their behaviour.

When the school opened up after the Christmas break (8th of January), it had marked the start of long & difficult journey. That journey was to simply make the school into a better learning environment & as well as a safe environment for the pupils.

There were 4 minor changes that took place: New uniform, English & Maths lessons every morning & addressing the staff as "sir" or "ms". We even introduced something called "isolation" (IL for short) which is where pupils will spend half a day or a full day in a separate room to do their work. The intention of this is to help the pupils reflect on their behaviour. I'm delighted to say that it was a success! Or at least for most part.

On the 25th of February, there were 2 more changes to the school curriculum, and they were both major ones... A FULL timetable of lessons & the new warning system. The intention of the warning system is to reduce the pupils' behaviour, and is also made up of 3 warnings. If a pupil gets a warning 3, they go to the inclusion hub, and they have to do a 10min detention. Failing that, then it's an IL the following day for the morning. If not, then it's an IL the WHOLE day. Failing THAT, then it leads to a suspension.

During the 5 months that I've been a part of the new changes journey, I've seen how much more settled & calmer the pupils have been! As a result, there has been a reduced number of behavioural incidents, This is why having the consistent structure & routine really helps SEMH pupils to feel more secure in a learning environment, as they know that we care about their education, as well as their mental wellbeing.

Time travelling back to the 25th of November (when I had first started working at the school), I honestly couldn't believe how dysfunctional it was back then, where there were hardly any lessons going on, no timetable structure & there were behaviour incidents happening every single day. Sometimes even a few times a day. It was just insane. I couldn't even imagine how unsettled those pupils must have been feeling back then without the consistent structure & routine. They were scared, anxious & dysregulated (a cliché from that school). Ofsted even gave the school an "inadequate" rating, due to poor leadership & management.

To this day, yes, there will still be some pupil dysregulations, but that doesn't put a small dent on all of the positive progress the school have been making. If anything, the school is only getting better every single day! I'm also optimistic enough that Ofsted will give them a much better rating.

As a youth worker, it really makes me heart warmed to see vulnerable young people thrive in life. Especially those with a complicated background. 

An insight to SEMH: A new journey

Hello everyone! Well, what can I say, it's obviously been a long time since I was last active on here. And there are 2 reasons why...

I suppose the 1st one being I couldn't be bothered.

The 2nd one, however, is because I now have a weekday job in a SEMH school. To be more precist, I began this new job on the 25th of November of last year.

Since I have a day of nothing today, (which rarely happens anymore these days!😂) I thought I'd make use of it by utilizing the time to make this post. 

As the above title states, I will be talking about the 'ins & outs' of SEMH. I will also be sharing how much I have learned about SEMH.

You're probably asking: "What does SEMH stand for?"

SEMH stands for Social, Emotional & Mental Health.

Now you're asking: "What is Social, Emotional & Mental Health?"

Social, Emotional & Mental Health is a complex mental health condition, where people experience significant struggles with managing their behaviour & emotions. Alongside this, they may show inappropriate behaviour & language when it comes to reacting to a demand that they do not want to do. An example of this could be being told to undertake 3 pages of Maths work.

A person with SEMH will often feel anxious & insecure most of the time, as they feel like they are no good at anything due to all of the trauma, humiliation & shame that they have experienced whilst growing up. Moreover, they will most likely feel intimidated by other people who seem "normal" to them. Or even try to compare themselves to any "normal" person.

In no way at all are people with SEMH bad with an unruly attitude, they are simply scared by all of the trauma & abuse that they have been through in their early stages of life. Even I can say for myself that I've seen/heard people with SEMH do incredible things! For example, they can obtain phenomenal knowledge about an industry that they are interested in. Especially the practical industries.

It is essentially mindful to know when you encounter a person with SEMH being dysregulated, they are NOT doing it with the intention of choosing to cause disruption. They are in that emotional state, because they have no other coping mechanisms. This is what is known as a "fight or flight" response.

All in all, people living with SEMH want to be like other people, as well as to be able to do things that other people do. In my opinion there isn't nearly enough SEMH awareness out there, so this is half the reason why I have made this post.

For those of you who have found this topic/post interesting, thank you for reading through, and I do plan on making more posts associated with SEMH in the future. 

Just bare in mind that I am only 3 months into this journey, so I wouldn't say I obtain a professional knowledge. I am still in the process of learning something new about SEMH everyday whilst at work. As for somebody who has been into psychology for 6 years now, I am very much looking forward to be riding on this journey...

An introduction to MIND Side By Side

Evening all, and happy Friday! I hope you're all looking forward to celebrating Christmas this year, however you may choose to celebrate it. 

In contrast, it is important to bare in mind that some people out there may not choose to celebrate Christmas due to certain issues they could be dealing with. An example of this could be their mental health. I, for one, can totally relate to this, so I know how it feels to be overwhelmed during the run up to Christmas. Let alone on Christmas Day.

Whilst still on this subject, I have just recently signed myself up to the MIND Side By Side community scheme. Although I have only discovered this community scheme within a short amount of time, I can already provide a useful introduction about it to anyone who is also considering to join up as well.

What is Side By Side? Side By Side is an online community group, where people all over the world can connect with one another. Going into more depth, Side By Side creates a sole purpose of supporting people who are battling mental health. (Myself included)

How does using Side By Side make me feel? Overall, I would say that using Side By Side helps me to feel relieved, by being allowed to express myself freely with other people without any judgement. That being said, I feel like I can relate to other people on the community site by developing an understanding of what they may be going through in terms of their own mental health. Every story is different & interesting to say the least. Whenever I use Side By Side, my mind breathes with relief, as it casually puts itself in timeout by knowing that it is going to get a well deserved break from reality. Making an effort to connect with other users helps my mind to unload all of the piling stress that cannot seem to disappear. This is purely because talking about how you feel to someone helps my mind to get rid of its load of excessive & repetitive thoughts. And in most cases, prevents them from reoccurring.

*I began this post on the 22/12/23, but didn't finish it until the 23/12/23*

MIND, you are amazing at what you do, and never give up... Ever...

Happy Saturday all! Hope you're all enjoying it so far, as for the rest of this week. I know I haven't been paying much attention on here lately, as I have been too occupied with my coursework & my jobs. 

During this time, I was disappointed to see on MIND's social media that the UK government has let down people's mental health, again... Although I do not consider myself to be somebody who requires support from any mental health professional who may have a degree of some sort, but I do consider myself to be somebody who cares about mental health being taken into consideration. Especially when it comes to people suffering from their mental health by having no one to turn to, as well as to seek professional advice. Read about it here: https://www.mind.org.uk/news-campaigns/news/uk-government-shelves-the-mental-health-bill/

Because I am a part of MIND'S workforce, I feel like it's only right if I speak up on behalf of the company/charity. Not just that, but also because I truly appreciate everything they do in a bid to fight for mental health.

MIND, if you're reading this, (or if you ever read this) I just want to say that I am a massive fan of what you do in your workforce. Whether these may consist of encouraging people to get a membership, volunteer or even create partnerships with work companies, you're doing a grand job with getting more people involved in fighting for mental health. That being said, you wouldn't be recognised for who you are, as well as what you do to this day if it hadn't been for any of those above things.

Let's also talk about your campaigning, as I can clearly see that you would happily go above & beyond to achieve. This also includes people happily going out of their way just so they can help you with the campaigning. This is obviously a inspirational success in a lot of people's eyes whenever they view these campaigning events on the media. Just a shame the government do not take this seriously...

On that note Charles, how come you didn't think to mention all of this in your speech last Tuesday? (7/11/23) I mean, it's not like this is a rocket science situation that will just fix on its own, this mental health crisis has to be dealt with by actually putting the mental health bill into action. Words cannot even begin to describe as to how shocked I am that this has been not been sorted out for the past 6 years now, and the UK government think it's okay for people's mental health to go unnoticed in this country?! 

All I can really say at this point, is that something HAS to be done in order for the UK government to put the mental health bill into action, and to ensure no one's mental health gets ignored. But until then...

Keep on fighting for mental health MIND.✊🏻💙

   

 

My thoughts on the "Check in on those around you" video

Alrighty, although World Mental Health Day has come & gone, I still want to provide you all with a video that shares a silent, but powerful message. 

As the title states, I also want to share my thoughts on the video, as I want to spread the important awareness of checking in on the people around you. This is because everyone has a right to check in on people around them, as it helps to those people to feel wanted when they feel like they are alone by thinking that nobody cares about them.

Even though this video (below) is produced by Norwich City FC, it was also a collaboration with Samaritans for the purpose of raising awareness on World Mental Health Day.

  

What do I think of this video?

I think this video was very well presented, as its aim was to spread the importance of checking in on whoever is around you. In this case, the video consisted of 2 men at a Norwich City FC football game. The man on the right was clearly trying to enjoy himself. The man on the left was also happy, but not as much as the man next to him.

I actually found it heartwarming to see the 2 men looking like they're enjoying themselves at the game together, as if they were bonding in a friendly manner. 

This was where the deceiving truth lies beneath. 

The man on the right, was purposely PUTTING ON a happy face, just for the sake of the man on the left not being able to tell how he is actually feeling like INSIDE. And because the man on the left failed to notice by not checking up on him, he just presumed that man was having the time of his life, when really, he wasn't feeling that way on the inside.

If those 2 men were actors in that video, I'd say they had done a professional job at portraying their characters in it, as I'm sure it wasn't easy to play 2 people showing their presumed feelings on the outside.

The end part of the video showed the man, who was sitting on the left, walk silently over to where he was sitting during the football game. He was also looking sad while holding the man on the right's football shirt. This indicates me that the man, who was sitting on the right, must have done something to himself that made him not come back to the next game with the man on the left...

I thought the ending part of the video was just right to conclude it, as well as deliver the morale of the video itself. I'm sure everyone else can agree that the ending scene must have touched deep inside the mind, as you must be thinking to yourselves: "If only the man on the left was checking in on the man on the right, he would still be here now..."

That is the end of my view. Please do feel free to share your own thoughts on this video, and do remember to keep on checking in on the people around you. 

Take care.💚

Why looking after your mental health is important during the autumn season

Well, October has come around again as quickly as that. Which also means that autumn has officially begun, and those longer nights will be slowly drawing as we head towards winter.

As the title says, I came across this post on the Samaritans Facebook page, and thought that I would share what I have seen on here, so you all can get a glimpse of it as well. Although Samaritans had actually shared the post from another blogging website, called: MentalHealthUK.

Rather than break this bit down into rhetorical question paragraphs, I'll just insert my personal insight, which will explain what I like to do during the autumn period.

First off, I try & make an effort to go out exercising as much as possible during my spare time. This is mainly because I want to keep myself in good shape when the temperature turns colder. But also, I like to do this to keep my mental health in sanity mode.

Whilst on the subject of mental health, I like to keep myself occupied with different things as well. All of which can vary from writing, blogging, drumming, cleaning or even trying out a new hobby. 

It is important to be mindful of your mental health during autumn, as it's easy to just sit back by hardly wanting to do anything at all. To extend this point, this could be down to you suffering from seasonal affective disorder as a result of feeling uninterested in life due to the colder months & those longer nights. This is why keeping yourself busy as possible will help destract you from feeling unactive.

I think that's everything covered for this post now. I hope you've all found this piece of advice beneficial to you, as well as to myself, and I shall hope to publish again sometime next week!

Today's quote of the day (Explained)

Well, looks like summer is starting to come to an end... I know that it was a random thing to say, but I felt like saying it anyway!

Moving on, I hope everyone is good & has been keeping productive, whatever that may well be. In my case, I've just been knee deep in work at Challengers Play scheme, as well providing myself with more better work opportunities for myself in the near future. (Something I might mention on here IF I get the job) 

As the above title states, this QOTD shall be dedicated to my current busy lifestyle.

Why does this chosen QOTD speak out to me? Well, this is due to the fact that my mental health always seems to be at its best when I am out & about doing stuff. This would also include my busy life, as I'm pretty much outdoors almost everyday doing something. Most of which are for essential reasons, such as work.

That being said, this would define my high level of physical health, because I like to get out everyday & do stuff. By doing so, helps me to distract myself from boredom. Or to be more specific on that, prevent myself from unnecessary worrying about things that don't need worrying about.

To conclude my explanation, my recommendation for anyone struggling to keep physically & mentally motivated would be to get out everyday & do something. Even if it's only for a walk round your local area, it's still better than doing absolutely noth8ng at all! Plus, this was something I've learnt myself when I did the Samaritans 310,000 steps challenge.

My outtake on YoungMinds #EndTheWait Campaign (20/3/23)

*Just so we're clear, I'm not fully back on here just yet. I'm only making a brief pop up on here, because I want to share my opinion on something that is important/concerning*

I was meant to make this post on Monday, but I never got round to doing so until now. Better late than never I suppose.

On Monday, (20/3/23) local MP's were invited to attend the Houses of Parliament to participate in YoungMinds' EndTheWait Campaign.

Why? This is because the government has not been taking people's mental health seriously enough. The government had opened their eyes up to what was going on, and said that they will make a solid promise to end the wait for people's mental health to be seen to back in January of this year. Unfortunately, that solid promise had been abolished soon after, as the government decided to make other things their priorities instead.

Last summer alone, including the time where the government first delivered its "end the wait" promise, young people have not been getting the much needed support for the following 3 reasons: Didn't feel supported by their GP when trying to seek support, waited over a month or simply turned away when trying to seek support. (Statistics will be shown in the attached link to YoungMinds webpage below this post)

I, as an individual with mental health, find it shocking to say the very least. I actually find the government's actions more appalling, as people (whom had tried seeking support) out there are still suffering with their mental health because of the poor choices that the government had made. I personally feel as though no one has the right to suffer with their mental health due to not being enough support. It's shameful, and something needs to be done to improve on it.

As soon as YoungMinds had announced that the government had broke their promise to "EndTheWait", they sent out the message to everyone that they booked the Houses of Parliament for the 20/3/23, so local MP's would be in attendance to discuss young people's ongoing mental health problems, mental health support & making their voices heard. This was followed by getting young people (including myself) to sign a petition to "EndTheWait" on mental health treatment, as there were a lot of people suffering enough due to the mentioned above circumstances. Yes, I did sign the petition, as I wanted my voice to be heard, as well as participate in the campaign. I feel it was absolutely the right & necessary choice of action, in a bid to hold the government accountable in this manner.

The next part of the campaign, had involved inviting local MP's to the EndTheWait event at Parliament. This also included writing a letter to local MP's explaining why they should attend this event. I wanted to invite my local MP to this event, as again, it was only sensible that they address myself & other young people's concerns over ongoing mental health problems we still face today in society. Like everyone else in this campaign, I thought it was a good idea that local MP's needed to be involved in young people's issues, such as mental health. In my view, if MP's can debate about everyday issues in our country day in, day out as part of their job description, then I don't see any reason why MP's can't step away to address young people's mental health concerns. 

If you've finished reading up to this point, thank you for taking the time to read through. Remember, everyone has their own opinions when it comes to talking about something like this, so please don't be offended in any kind of way. 

Here's the webpage link: https://www.youngminds.org.uk/support-us/join-the-movement/end-the-wait/

Tips for looking after your mental health at Christmas

Hi everyone, it may be the 3rd day into the Christmas week, but better late than never. The reason for saying this, is because I thought about sharing some useful insight that some people have to go through at Christmas. 

Whilst I can understand that Christmas can be some people's most favourite time of the year by enjoying time with friends/family, enjoying their festive food/drink & celebrating like mad. However, I can also understand that Christmas is not some people's favourite time of the year either. In fact, it could may well even be some people's WORST time of the year.

With all the said, I think it's important that we all spread mental health awareness in relations to what some people have to go through at Christmas, as well as managing to cope with whatever it is that they are going through. I have attached the source I was looking at, written by someone on Young Minds, which contains of the useful ways that help them to physically & mentally make it through Christmas Day.

Source link: https://www.youngminds.org.uk/young-person/blog/looking-after-your-mental-health-at-christmas/

Don't forget, my pm's are always welcome to anyone for whoever needs to talk during the festive period.💞🎄

"Into each life, some rain must fall"

As the quote states in the title of this post, I want to evaluate with you all what is the meaning of this quote is and why. This is especially because there may be people out there going through a rough patch right now. And just so it happens... I am one of those people. Hence my other main reason for this post.

What I am about to share with you all is very personal as to how I've been feeling for the past 2 months. My outcome for doing so is to encourage other people to shed some light about their feelings, as well as what they've been going through to make them feel that way in a bid to not feel alone. I know people intend to feel the need to not disclose their feelings at all to make them feel better, but inevitably, they will eventually just eat you alive by making you suffering in silence. (FTR, something I'm still in the process of  learning myself)

Not only will evaluating this quotation as to how I've been feeling help my reflect on myself, but I can use it to make me feel positively optimistic about what will be awaiting my future at the end of a temporarily pitch black tunnel.

 

During my last couple of posts, I've purposely used them to raise awareness on Mental Health. In some of these posts, I think I can recall saying that I hadn't had the time to be making posts much more often than I used too, as my focus was too prioritized on other things going on in my life which had prevented me from working on my blog. I know at first was being private as to why. However, now that I'm posting this under its title, I feel like this is the right time to disclose everything.

Here's the truthful reason behind it all...

Since the beginning of September, I began my final year at college. Towards the end of that month, I temporarily had to pull out of work in order for me to focus on my coursework. Also throughout that same month, I was getting back into swimming by getting my local leisure centre membership back. However, it had only lasted throughout September alone, as I then realized that my finance was going downhill which wasn't hugely down to paying £37 a month for my membership. Although I was crazy to even think I was able to pay that amount of money in the first place. Especially with my financial instability going on.

My finance first became unstable at the start of September, where I was due payment at one of the last places I was working at. Unfortunately, due to certain circumstances, (which I'm not allowed to go into detail about) I wasn't able to receive my full work payment. I say full, as that payment consists of a couple of previous jobs I did over the summer. To make those matters worse, I've been having to use the remainder of the money I've got for my travel to & from college. I do get money for my travel to college, but I only get it once per month. And if that wasn't enough, I had even paid £85 for 2 GCSE resits. Between juggling them & my coursework, my mind simply found it too hard to work on both at the same time.

As of now, I've gotten most of my resits over and done with. However, it has caused me to fall behind with some of my coursework revision due to me putting my focus upfront on my resists.

My life at home hasn't exactly been a luxury ether. I cannot afford to do much for myself right now due to my constant finance worry. Every time, I stay at home, my mind lives in a constant state of being angry about everything. Whenever I'm doing something away from home, I suddenly feel happy as if nothing has ever happened. 

Needless to say, my Mental Health has really been through it with all of the mentioned above that has happened. My anxiety has made me feel worried by continuously thinking about what the inevitable will be if any of these problems do not get better. Recently, it has gotten to a point where I feel so negative about everything that is happening in my life right now. So much, that don't give 2 slices of bread of where I'll end up in life.

This is where this quotation comes into play...

The more I think about the meaning of this quotation: "Into each life, some rain must fall" the more I make myself aware that there will be better times ahead. If we're talking psychologically here, every mindset has to experience sadness for it to become stronger. Otherwise, if it stayed happy all of the time, it would not know how to cope with being sad, let alone change it for the better.

To conclude off this long post, it is important to remain positively optimistic during a rough patch, like mine by doing what you enjoy doing in the meantime. I suppose it would be appropriate for me to compare what I'm currently going through now to how I had managed to cope during 3 of the COVID lockdowns.

There is always a way in life, stick with it.

How spending time in nature can help with Mental Health

I was originally going to make a post to raise awareness for #WorldMentalHealthDay. But since it's now past the date, I'll use this post to talk about something (in this post) that I've come across recently to help raise not only late awareness for Mental Health, but to give you a personal insight about one of my favourite ways to manage it.

As I was out on a local walk this Sunday gone, I was just taking in my surroundings when the idea hit me to capture a picture of what I was seeing. I thought I could use this picture I took to discuss all the beneficial things about spending time in nature in my blog. Even if it's only for as short as 10mins.

It has been proven in the Mental Health & Psychology industry that spending time in nature can have a positive impact on your Mental Health.

Why? When you're out walking in a natural environment, your mind will become fascinated to take in all its naturistic things. Examples given: Leaves, rivers or even squirrels. Especially now we're currently in autumn, it has so much trend to give to just a natural environment itself that it lights up the scenery with different colours. This makes you appreciate how lucky you are that you will always have a nature spot not far from you, so you can take a long or short time out from whatever is stressing you to a calming nature spot to detoxicate.

Although the same could be said for the other seasons as well, but I just think in my opinion that autumn deliveries the best nature content.

The picture I took above shows how just spending momentarily time in nature can have a positive impact on my Mental Health. Purposely taken in wide view, so it captures all my surroundings facing frontwards.

Quote of the day... (Explained)

This has now been my 3rd recent post in about almost a month of absence... Yes, I did have a reason('s) why. Rather than waste this post rambling on about them, as could end up boring people. I am just going to cut to the chase by saying that I have been taking the lengthy time out to focus on myself. This is because I have, and will probably still have some very important decisions to make in my life going forward. I know for sure that it won't be an easy journey, but me being the determined & dedicated human being that I am, I'll find a way to keep pushing through without giving up.

Back onto the post. The chosen quote I have picked out for you all is called: "Mental Health... is not a destination, but a process. It's about how you drive, not where you're going." - Noam Shpancer, PHD.

Why this quote? Like I said before, I now have some important life choices to make which will require me, as well as my mindset to just focus on driving towards that route of my life journey. This comes with all the best intentions of me wanting to psychically & mentally drive myself down that road, so it helps me to keep within that pace of keeping myself in check that I am actually going down the right road towards my destination.

It's important to keep in mind that's it's not all about just simply getting to my destination in life, because it matters more of how I intend to control my own car (if you like) that will only teach me I must embrace the upcoming challenges stood in my chosen path, so they can be used as learning curbs which will all be part of me gradually becoming more successful in which way I tackle them.

#Anxiety and living in different times

Something that I literally just came up with at the top of my head tonight.

Personally, I'm not one for being against any of which one, but I'm just interested to know why. I am wary of the amount of people there are out there (including the people I know) that tend to live in whichever moment their mindset tells them to. Some may have the mindset capacity to live in all of them. Then again, everyone is different like that, so there is no misconception whatsoever. I'm just casually spreading my anxiety awareness to everyone.

However, if anxiety was to play a part in what I'm talking about, it would be that it has to tell oneself's mind to be stuck in that mindset with no reason as to why not. Before, anyone here jumps the gun, as to say: "Do you know what you are talking about?" I actually do, because my anxiety buffers to living in each of these moments due to me overthinking about things that I cannot change or things that are likely 99.99% (being creatively mathematical here) not going to happen.

What helps me to manage this? To put simply, I very much enjoy living in the now moment. I find it an even balance of how I live day in day out, as it benefits my anxiety from going to far ahead or being stuck somewhere from what happend 6yrs ago that I couldn't do nothing about which would still remain that way now.

But if I'm talking about different people out there... What is it about them that they enjoy living in which moment of their life? For all I know, it could be anything. Are they still reeling from the past? Do they just want to be in a world when they finally change the world? Does reliving in a certain time make them feel better about themselves? Do they rather go by the phrase: 'Life is like a box of chocolates. You'll never know what you're gonna get.'? The reasons are endless...

Whatever moment works for managing your anxiety, there is no right or wrong discrimination.

Even celebrities are just human beings (Anxiety Awareness post)

In a bid for anyone trying to gain a further recognition on how anxiety works on people, I am going to start making posts relating to anxiety. For this one, I have attached pictures of celebrities giving out their own perspectives on how anxiety makes them vision the world.

What's their purpose? This is because they want to shed some light on everybody around them going through similarly to what they're going through, in terms of anxiety. Anxiety doesn't necessarily have to effect us ordinary human beings, it can happily choose to have an effect on a celebrity lifestyle as well. In fact, anxiety doesn't give a damn weather you're the nicest person in the world or even the smartest person in the world. It likes to bring a difference to people's everyday lives, (including celebrities) so it makes them vision the world of mental health through their eyes. Also the world in general, goes by without saying.

As a friendly reminder for you all, my outcome of these posts is to spread awareness by making everyone reading not feel alone when they try to open up about their anxiety.  

Let's talk about #ADHD

I think I can safely say that I've been keeping my productive self busy during the recent weeks. The variations include work, finishing off the remainder of my coursework & keeping up with my self-care. (Going out walking)

Although, with that said, I have become rather interested in researching the overall subject of #ADHD. But why? Mainly there is a ton of psychology which plays a part in how ADHD operates inside one self's mind. This also includes how they manage their wellbeing.

Not only that, but I am also aware of the amount of misconception there is about having ADHD, as some people tend to view having ADHD as a negative. But let me tell you, that really isn't all about having ADHD. The condition goes way deeper than what some people think. This is why I can gladly say that I've done enough thorough research to be able to piece together enough evidence that I need to make this post. (I'll link my evidences below)

Like I said before, I want to use this post (as well as evidences) to highlight all of the positive aspects of how ADHD works, so it helps everyone to gain a better, as well as a wider picture understanding.

Myths VS Facts:

As mentioned before, some people tend to view ADHD as a means of little - no focus whatsoever. Coming from an aspiring psychologist's view who is keen on the subject, I personally think it is rubbish to be viewing ADHD in that trend, as it's undermining their hidden capabilities in terms of what oneself with ADHD is actually good at. What people should bare in mind in relations to the mentioned myth above, is to understand that oneself with ADHD have a different brain structure. Moreover on that, people with ADHD have a uniquely good level of hyperfocus, which means they're interested on focusing on things that interest them. And if necessary, we could be talking crazy interested in something which makes ADHD individuals want to be active in day in, day out.

Another thing which may annoy those who have got ADHD, is if you was to say to them: "You will need to outgrow it eventually". They would feel offended, as there is no such thing as needing to outgrow ADHD. Instead, there is such a possibility of managing one self's ADHD, as it could be beneficial to help them to work on themselves. This also includes managing their mental health.

https://www.understood.org/en/articles/common-myths-about-adhd  

It's not just the behavioural side:  

What I mean by that, is there is evidence which shows people with ADHD tend to have a creative mind. This evidence has proven people with ADHD to be able to express themselves in a creative manner, as it helps them to unleash their happiness by wanting everyone around them to acknowledge their feelings. Particularly, in a way which makes them feel appreciated to show off their unique talents. Allowing an ADHD individual to show off their hidden creativity, allows them to be open minded in life by thinking that there is nothing which can hold them back in any shape of form. Meaning, they dislike the idea of having barriers to achieving whatever they want to achieve.

https://www.additudemag.com/adhd-creativity-brain-health/  

The ADHD Iceberg:

In case if anyone is interested, I have attached the iconic ADHD Iceberg picture below. Purposely because you can feel free to do your own research on ADHD by looking at its actual factors.

*I actually began working on this post last weekend, but I ended up getting distracted with other stuff going on*

I'm thinking about working on my self-care throughout next week

*A bit of inspiration from TheAutismDad blog*

As I've had a great day walking today, it gave me enough positive inspiration to go out walking throughout next week. I thought it would be a productive way of occupying myself, in a bid to keep healthy & active, as I could really do with the fitness kick.

Not only that, but there is psychological reasoning behind my intended self-care. As soon as I go back to college the following week, I have to go in EVERYDAY to do Maths & English exams, (hopefully the last time having to do them) with my usual lessons in-between. It will be a HECTIC week, but I'll sail through it, like a calm breeze.

Just in case if there are any walking fanatics out there reading this, let me give you the lowdown about the mindful benefits of walking in the outdoors. Especially in the sunny weather, I can think of literally nothing better to do than spend my day going on long walks. This is a psychological effect on the brain's hormone called "Serotonin" which helps your brain to boost its mood, therefore, has a domino effect on your mood. 

Here's the source link if you're curious to find out more: https://www.healthline.com/health/depression/benefits-sunlight#_noHeaderPrefixedContent 

It's perfectly human to have an "Ugh" day

Evening everyone, as of now, I'm glad to say that I'm currently on half-term. This means I'll have more free time on my hands to invest in my blogging again. Not only that, but all my coursework is done and up to date.

Here's to a well earned week off!

On a slight downer, though, I haven't felt like doing anything today. It's one of those days where I lack motivation to produce productivity. I like to call these particular days: "Ugh days"

The way how I see myself experiencing one of these specially named days, is where my mind tells me that its lacking thought power, otherwise known as motivation, so it goes into recharging mode.

During recharging mode, my mind paces up and down, as if it was an alive human being walking about inside my head. If any of you reading know how to relate to this, then you can obviously understand how frustrating it can be to feel like your mind doesn't want to work with your motivation right now. 

Realistically, the reality of the recharging process is me just trying to keep myself sane from going insane. If that makes sense? I say this, as it could be worse when you could inevitably be stuck with a dead battery for days.

To peice everything together here, there is absolutely nothing wrong with having an "Ugh" day. We humans have to experience it sometime in life.

If anything, it shows that your mind needs to recharge for a stronger function. To put it another way, it recharges for you (as a character) to keep on playing in the real world video game.