I have noticed that whenever R is sick, I anxiously start barking remedies at her. Wear socks, drink green tea, and take Crocine! This helps her Diarrhea less than it helps entertain my helplessness. Similarly, my family and friends have been prescribing exercises, pranayam, and hobby classes for my depression & PTSD, almost daily. Sane words that just sound like shrill beeps in my head now.
What I wish people who care knew is that – any mental illness has stages. And different things help at different stages. Think of it as fracturing a bone. You need to wear a plaster till the bone sets. Physiotherapy comes after that. Being asked to exercise or join a hobby class when I was at the deep end of depression felt like being pushed off a 12-storied building with the expectation of growing wings by the time I reached the ground.
Between then and now, I have gone for therapy consistently and taken my medicines diligently. Now I run every time my mind and body permit me to. I paint, stitch, and read. Same self, a different stage. As a person who is suffering from mental illnesses, taking therapy, and medication, and getting better every day, I want to write of things that helped/help me cope. The most important thing is to seek therapy.
Among the other million little things (of which I will write later) one thing that helped was: following people on Instagram, Tumblr, WordPress, etc. who were/are also dealing with mental health issues of their own. Reading and knowing co-sufferers helped me accept what I felt. I realized I am not the only person going through a tough time, and that the universe is not conspiring against me. I stopped worrying about “she is victimizing herself”, “doing it for attention”, and “doesn’t want to help herself”. The way they speak of it, and the way they deal with it, like another fracture, painful menstrual cramp, or migraine, makes the depression, anxiety, or panic lighter to carry; like something that gets cured eventually. It helps me not be scared of medicines. And the times I see them create art, words, and actions while being in the same state as me, inspires me.
A small list of people I follow:
@halfthestory
@doddleoddle
@richa.co_
@vivnunez
@badgirlsclub