Set out time for you

 You time.

For me time on my own is important this isn't because I dislike the people I am with I just know when my social battery runs out I need to look after myself and step away from others. 

Simply having time for me everyday is really important to look after myself. I often do this by exercise this could be 20 or 40 minutes I have a plan set out for my week to focus on different muscle groups, this not only helps my mental health but also helps my fitness. 

Exercise is very personal so if exercise routines like this wouldn't work for you then that's okay. 

Taking time for you could also be something as simple as going on a walk, for me putting on a podcast or listening to music and taking the dog on a walk is always something that helps me, however beforehand going on a walk is the last thing I want to do and will do all I can to put it off. 

Self-care-

At the end of a difficult therapy session my therapist always asks me what Im going to do for self care, for some reason even though I know this question is coming I never have an answer and don't really like being asked. Firstly self care doesn't have to be something extravagant like a spa day or going out and getting a massage it could be something as simple as going to bed at 9:30pm instead of 10pm or having a hot shower or a bath before bed. 

This is what comes up first when I typed into google self care https://www.everydayhealth.com/self-care/

"Self-care is not synonymous with self-indulgence or being selfish. Self-care means taking care of yourself so that you can be healthy, you can be well, you can do your job, you can help and care for others, and you can do all the things you need to and want to accomplish in a day." This alone tells you all need to know, self care is taking care of yourself whether is to reduce anxiety or reduce upcoming anxiety. It's about putting yourself first in a way that is not selfish.

Other people-

Steven Bartlett, entrepreneur and CEO of multiple companies wrote on twitter "Your mental health is more important than you career, bank balance, other people's opinions, that event you said you would attend and your family wishes, combined. If taking care of yourself means letting someone down, then let someone down." This way of living and looking at things broadens your own and others people ideas of mental health reducing stress for people who suffer. 

Mental health is an extremely difficult thing for people who don't struggle to get their head around. My dad at the beginning really struggled to know how to talk to me when all he wanted to do was take the pain away it annoyed him that he wouldn't be able to this caused us to have arguments where in the end nothing was solved and we just felt bad with how we ha treated each other. Since then he has been able to learn how I could react when I'm in a really difficult state and understands that self care to me can just be sitting in the car on the drive home from college and not talk to each other. 

This blog is not only for those who suffer but those who knows someone that suffers and I hope that even if I can bring some sort of insight to one persons life, I will feel proud.

Au revoir

Zoe