Originally published January 1, 2012.
Chris Brogan, web entrepreneur, and also a depression survivor himself, has a blog topic/exercise called “My Three Words.” He uses this exercise the New Year as a way to create what he calls his “guiding pillars” to focus his business on the new year. Ala Chris Brogan, I’m going to borrow his idea and create “My Three Words for Mental Health in 2012.”
I’d love it if you’d leave your three words to improve and maintain your mental health in 2012.
Respect. Reframe. Consistent.
Respect
I am going to respect myself enough to practice self-care. I found out (once again!) self-care is not something I can only practice sometimes. I had an accident in February 2011 that has taken me this entire year to recover from. I didn’t pay enough attention to the symptoms right after the accident, as I was working a lot. I went to several doctors after the accident, but there were multiple symptoms, so it was difficult to diagnose.
It wasn’t the first time in my life that I faced a physical or mental illness, so I thought I was practicing whole body care, I thought I had learned this life lesson a few times before! I practiced mindful breathing throughout the day, generally paced myself, and asked for help when I needed it at home. But I was often frustrated and sad about how I felt, how little I thought I was achieving in my business goals.
I ended up needing intensive physical therapy and needing to slow down quite a bit, which has helped me a whole lot. The therapy over the year has taken up quite a lot of my time. I am going to take respect for myself into the new year, as self- respect is a valuable mental health tool. And it is a day-to-day process for me.
Which brings me to my next word for 2012.
Reframe
2011 was a year of a emotional frustration, fear and anger at myself.
The amount of time needed to put into taking care of myself and healing took a lot of time away from my business. I was initially extremely frustrated with myself, and angry about what I couldn’t achieve.
Then, I recalled the felt-sense memory of what it felt like to be home with a baby, the feeling of timelessness and how real it felt to not be on a time schedule. How separate from worldly work I felt, yet how truly real it felt to be in the flow of life, a life without artificial boundaries.
I thought that I had [practiced reframing so much in mu life that it was natural habit! Oh, well, au contraire, again! It is a day-to-day process!
So I reframed; I borrowed some of my past feelings, and decided I needed to let my body be in its natural moment and give myself some space to heal.
2012 is a year for reframing. I need to give myself space & time to heal. We can all use reframing skills for situations where there is conflict and pain to a dilemma. I will work on my business at a pace that is emotionally and physically healthy for me.
Consistent.
In 2012, I want to apply an attitude of consistency. I want to remember that even when things don’t go exactly as planned it doesn’t mean that it is a negative event. If I get fatigued, if I feel like hopelessness is creeping up, I can take a breath, regroup and reframe, and remember to preserve my mental health.
I want to consistently have respect for myself, by practicing self-care. I want to consistently apply the technique of reframing situations in order to mindfully develop as a mature and whole human being. I want to consistently be fully present for my family. I want to consistently be fully present in service to my clients. And I want to consistently be present in development of my business. And it is an attentive process for me on a day-to-day basis.
Your Three Words for Mental Health in 2012?
I’d love to hear what your Three Words for Mental Health in 2012.
If you’d like to write a blog about your Three Words for Mental Health, please post the link here! Love to have you!
When things get tough, when maybe the lay-offs at work are grinding you down, or when you lose someone close to you, or you go through your rough times, your times of self-doubt, remember your mental health is very important. Good mental health is a very real possession, guard your thoughts and feelings carefully, take steps to remain mentally healthy, as you are very valuable.
Treatment is available, you are not alone.
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