How do we ease anxiety and rise out of depression? We do so by choosing to do whatever it takes to inspire our own healing and recovery. Maybe we need to breathe differently. Delve deeper into mindfulness. Check out meditation. Move differently; yoga, walk, run, bike, hike, Qigong, take up Kung Fu, Salsa Dance, play in the garden, 
paddleboard…whatever floats our boat. Eat differently; better, more, less. Nourish and hydrate. Read more. Sleep longer, sleep less. Talk more and to the right people. Talk less and listen more, again to the right people. Maybe we find ourselves a Counsellor; if it’s not a good fit, we don’t stop the search until we find the one that is. Maybe we check out Group Counselling and we say YAY or NAY! Maybe we consider medications that help us take the edge off; give ourselves the space to cope and to do what must be done to compel movement forward. Maybe we are already on meds and they are doing the job or perhaps they are exacerbating current symptoms and/or creating new ones. Again we have a choice, we advocate for ourselves, we go to our Psychiatrist and say hey, “I don’t feel right.”
Case in point. I started on a new medication during my hospital stay to help bring balance to my mood and ease my anxiety. Within a few weeks I was seeing RED, literally. Rage has never, ever been a part of my mental health symptomology, nor has it been part of my day to day modus operandi. Let me tell you I was one short fuse; INSTANTANEOUS RAGE. I did not recognize myself and knew something wasn’t right. This prompted me to speak with my Doc and under his guidance I weaned myself off. Eventually (and with much relief I might add) the green hue of my skin began to fade and I was able to kick my inner Hulkster to the curb!
All of the above, some of the above, none of the above may be helpful in navigating our journey with mental health and what ends up working may completely surprise us. The fact remains that healing and recovery lies within our very own hands. If we knew that a resource, a tool, a lifestyle change could ease discomfort, sadness, and pain, and move us towards contentment, joy, and freedom, would it not be worth giving it a TRY?!!! And it goes without saying, some of the things we choose to explore in our self-care strategy may not always become part of the solution but MANY absolutely will, with symptoms alleviating, maybe even disappearing- HOW FREAKING AWESOME WILL THAT FEEL?!!!
YOUR WELL-BEING, YOUR MENTAL HEALTH. GO GET IT. WHATEVER IT TAKES, HOW EVER LONG IT TAKES. LEAVE NO STONE UN-TURNED. YOU ARE WORTH IT.
Gratitude. Love. Namaste.
Julie