All right, y'all, it's time for some real talk.
Mental health is a subject that is never talked about enough. Having a mental health issue or illness is still something that is hugely (wrongly) stigmatized and that is a fact that bothers me a lot. I've dealt with extreme anxiety and depression my entire life, so this is a subject that is close to my heart. My experiences struggling with my mental health have greatly impacted my life, both positively and negatively. While the negative includes crippling panic attacks, struggling to just get out of bed some mornings, and having great difficulty talking to people (a fun little batch of crap!) there have been positives too. My experiences with anxiety and depression have given me a greater sense of understanding and compassion for other people, it helped prompt my interest in my degrees (psychology and sociology, for reference), and it also helped me search for a sense of community with people on the internet who have helped me immensely when it comes to advice and support in dealing with my mental health issues.
I want to give back to this, so I've started to do vlogs specifically dealing with my experiences with anxiety and depression. In these videos I aim to be painstakingly honest when it comes to talking about my experiences (which, although I joke around a lot and tend to be a pretty open person, was a lot harder than I would have ever dreamed!) I hope these videos help someone, somehow, or at least let people know that they're not alone. Anxiety and depression can be very isolating phenomenons, but community and communicating are perhaps some of the best weapons to use against them.
Here's my first (awkward) video. I hope to make more soon!
Thanks y'all -
Michelle
