Exploring the fabric of our stories one character at a time.

Just surviving or being the survivor

It is just a mark, a symbol forcing a pause, but not an end. The semicolon, a punctuation mark that is commonly used in English grammar to indicate a pause in the sentence, a continuation to follow. Just a dot and swish has a strong presence. This mark is not just a mark to others. It is a symbol of taking a pause in life and finding the way to continue. To start anew, all the while acknowledging that the past happened and moving on. A mark of surviving. Survivor that is stronger than before. Surviving the Good and Bad …

What is your life role in the story?

When we are going through life, turning the pages in our stories, every person we meet is a character. That character adds shape to our story. When we think about our own mental health chapter in our stories, we need to not only think about ourselves, but all of those characters in our story. Characterizing As we focus on our health, we need to look at the people in our lives to determine their role. In my life story, I have people that are clearly in the supporting role and people that are in the story as more static roles. …

Paying the high price for always being super

I have been talking about taking care of yourself in “Do you have enough time to take care of YOU?” and finding who is supporting you in “Do you have all of the support you need?“. Ultimately, are we paying the high price of always trying to be the superman or wonder woman of our family and friends? Stress and pressure can always come on small and build, and BUILD, until it overwhelms…then BOOM! Now there are problems. Building Pressure I have been finding myself hitting that last brick wall before I get to the BOOM of my mind. Constant …

Do you have all of the support you need?

But who supports you? The feeling of the weight of the world sitting on your shoulders can be unbearable at times. Running around, trying to take care of everyone. Coworkers, bosses, friends, parents, and siblings. Don’t forget your children, spouses, significant others, and grandparents. Providing care and interest into their daily lives. Always showing each your devotion and love for who they are and what they do. Where is the support I am sitting here thinking that I am lucky in many ways to have the support I do have. Each person in my life supports me in various ways. …

Afraid to talk to yourself? Now to start talking.

We all do it. Talk to ourselves, and in some cases, answer ourselves. “Ugh, why did I do that?” “Because you thought it was cool, but now it is just silly.” “I know!” “Not going to do that again, are you?” “Nope!” all said by me to me. Do you ever notice how freeing it can be sometimes? To be able to express some of the emotions you have pent-up in your mind, scratching to get out. We all know talking is one way to express your feelings. But what if you don’t want to let people know, but really, …

Do you have time enough to take care of YOU?

Day in and day out, you are using minutes and hours of every day to take care of coworkers, friends, family. What about you? When was the last time you took care of you? Do you have a significant other that takes care of you? Any family members that take care of you? Everyone deserves to be cared for, in any and all ways. Care enough to choose I have family members that recently chose to take care of themselves. Their parents can do only so much. They can love them. Be there for them, but they needed more. So, …

Is PTSD Affecting your Life?

WARNING: This was very difficult for me to write and may be difficult for many to read. That one day back some 20 years ago in September that changed everything in the United States. I remember driving into work hearing about it. Coworkers at the time that lived nearby. I heard of people saying they were supposed to be on one of the planes, but for some reason they weren’t. Friends telling me about family and friends they lost. After that and to some degree even now, my heart races every time I see a shadow of an airplane cross …

Finding Enrichment in a Healthy Well-Being

You are sitting there at your desk working away. Before you know it, the clock chimes and it is time to go home. Walking out of the office, you begin to feel like you spent the whole day doing things, but deep-down feeling like nothing got done. Sound familiar? How many days have you been having lately like that? Or how about those days that you get home, and you are so tired and frazzled, you question why you still work there? Occupational Enrichment The Occupational dimension is all about personal satisfaction and enrichment you feel in your work. Sure, …

Learning more about wellness

Having some sort of balance in your life can help calm some of the chaos in your mind. Since looking at the emotions and environment last week, let’s turn our focus on another dimension…Intellectual. School Learning I admit, growing up I struggled through school. Going through stressful times throughout childhood can do that. I was bullied from 2nd grade and continued getting teased until I hit high school. Then fell into a depression for 6 years. My academic focus was pretty much non-existent at that time. I would bring home grades barely making C’s and B’s. I found no area …

A Closer Look into Dimensions of Wellness

Mental Health Awareness month is coming to an end and I wanted to take a minute to focus on our overall wellness. These last few years have taken a toll on our emotions, our body and our minds. The added stress and strain of an uncontrolled virus and the worry of “what if” as we tried to learn how to avoid and still be able to live our lives. This pandemic has resulted in death, divorce, depression, suicides, and just an overall hostility in the world. (Mental Health is Health) As May is coming to an end and the summer …