worrying and fretting over the future is another big one that affects me as well. overthinking is a total bitch. thinking and fretting about the future is a superhuge megabitch. its a bigger bitch than joffrey from Game of Thrones. and that guy is a HUGE bitch who needs his smug face smashed with a brick, so you can see how much of a pain in the arse overthinking is.
for those of you who dont know who joffrey is....
i have found that a good way to deal with these things is to keep your mind pre-occupied with other things. now at this point some may say that having a job would keep my mind busy. unfortunately a big chunk of my mental health issues links in with new people, places and events. and mentally i am not prepared for that. (those arent my words. one of the companies i get help and support from have said that.)
fortunately, i have found a few things that do keep my mind busy and give me little things to focus on, so im going to talk about those a little bit.
first one.
Pets: im not quite sure how it happened, but ive ended up with 5 geckos and 3 snakes. i really enjoy looking after them. theres something very satisfying about seeing one of your pets is healthy and doing well. i took on one of the geckos and it turned out she was ill, so ive been nursing her back to health and its great to see the change she has had over the past few months.
ive actually found that having animals that depend on you is a great way of motivating yourself to get up in the morning when you arent having a good day. lets be honest, everyone has days where you think "sod this, im staying in bed. " when you have pets to look after then you HAVE to get up to take care of them. sometimes that can be just the kick in the arse you need to get up and do stuff.
2.
DVD's and Videogames- im a BIG movie nerd. wont even try to deny it, and im fairly into my videogames as well. both of these provide a little escape from reality which allows me to have a couple of hours just to switch off and not think about the usual shite that gets to me. a little escape from this world into a movie or videogame can do a surprisingly good amount for your short term mental state. ive always found that pixar films are great to just switch off too. they are light hearted and fun (and in my opinion finding nemo is the second greatest kids film ever made. so thats a bonus when i watch that)
and yes, im 24 and i love to watch pixar films! great films for any age!
videogames (or at least on the current gen consoles of ps3 and xbox360) have an added bonus of trophies and achievements. not only does playing games give you a bit of a rest from everyday life (which for some people suffering from both mental and physical illness can be a MASSIVE struggle) but now they also give you little goals and targets to set yourself. ive lost track of how many times ive sat down to play a game for an hour and said "yeah, i'll try and get that achievement".... 3 hours later im still trying to do it! the sense of accomplishment is a nice little high to have as well.
3.
Sport/exercise: always a good one. whether its going fishing, or going for a skate (although ive not been on my board for a few months now. i need to get back on the ol' wheelyplank) or having a kickabout with a friend at the park near his place its always satisfying to do something physical. every form of support ive been given via counselling, group meetings, cbt etc have all said that physical exercise is a great way to increase your self esteem. its true. all i need to do now is do it a lot more so i can actually get in shape and not be a fleshy pink coloured version of the staypuft man from ghostbusters 2!
4.
Reading; always good to read a book and keep your mind busy. not much needs to be said about this one, although it does lead me on to.......
...this last one, which is a bit different... those who know me personally (i know there are one or two who read this) will know that i am a HUGE Walking Dead fan. i love both the comics and the tv series. the weird thing is that TWD, and especially the comics have got me through a lot. sounds ridiculous doesnt it; a story about an apocalyptic world where the dead are returning to life and feasting on the living doesnt exactly sound like the kind of thing that would keep a depressed mind occupied but it works for me. i guess that just goes to show that it could be absolutely anything that may be what helps you relax the most.
while there are LOADS of things that people could do to keep their minds busy and off of the things that get to them, be it relationships, health, family, friends, self image, self confidence etc i think that it takes a little bit of time and effort to find the right thing for you. its a combination of trying little things and looking around to see what is right for you. maybe a close friend will recommend things to you. that works really well, especially if you are into the same things. a good friend of mine (and her husband) got me into the Walking Dead. they also got me into Game of Thrones as well. maybe its worth people asking those close to them if there is anything that they watch/read/play/do that might help them keep their brain busy. who knows, you might find something thats just right for you
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