Pretty Litter Giveaway #LoveYourPetDay
I hate changing the cat litter. it's the worst. But, now I'm actually excited to scoop it because...I got Pretty Litter! I have to admit, I've been eyeing Pretty Litter since Facebook keeps suggesting it in sponsored ads. It was so cool-looking! It's, well...pretty! Look it at!!! Not only is Pretty litter beautiful to look at, but it's practical and could save your cat's life. First of all, it lasts for 30 days. I'm not joking folks. You need to scoop daily, but you don't have to change the litter for a month. WHAT? Crazy and cool. Secondly, it turns cool colors when your cat pees. Dark Green or Blue This color indicates that your cat's urine is high in alkaline. It could mean an increased risk of stone formations in the bladder. Certain kinds of bacteria could cause a feline urinary tract infection. Yellow to Orange This color means that your cat’s urine is acidic. It could also indicate: Kidney disease Metabolic acidosis UTI Calcium oxalate crystal formation Red The red color means the presence of blood in your cat's urine. Possible health issues include: UTI Bladder inflammation Bladder stones Bladder cancer Renal pathology Pretty Litter has been a [...]
You’re not on vacation
At first, I thought you were on vacation. It didn't seem real, and for three months, I waited for a phone call or for you to spontaneously return from wherever you went. As time passed on, I realized that you weren't coming back. It's weird because I saw you die. I knew you were gone. I made it just in time, and you squeezed my hand, which let me know that you knew that I was there. I didn't get to have that one last conversation with you. The last time we talked, you said you wanted me to bring you cat stickers. There were so many things I wanted to tell you before you left. I hope that you are proud of me. You're in my dreams most nights. I'd like to think that it's you talking to me from wherever you are. There was one night that we were on the phone in my dream, and you told me that I could always talk to you through the potatoes. I took some potatoes and drew faces on them, and made my dad laugh the day before. Maybe you were watching. Every time I try to cry about you [...]
Anxiety State – A @FerrisBuilt Giveaway
Everyone who knows me well understands that I am anxious. I live with a chronic anxiety disorder. Now, we are in the midst of a pandemic, which means that my anxiety is even higher than it normally is, but I am not alone. We are all in a sort of anxiety state. COVID-19 has been brutal. So many people have lost their lives, family members, loved ones and businesses. In the midst of this crisis, people have had to band together and support one another. I am here today to highlight Lindsey Ferris. She is a single mom of two twin girls, who lives in Seattle. During the pandemic, she found herself without employment and needing to support her children. That is when she created Ferris Built! Ferris Built showcases clothing and gear that encourages mental health awareness. When I saw the Anxiety State gear, I had to get it! You can check out her site here: https://www.ferrisbuilt.net/ And here is your chance to enter to win an Anxiety State tee-shirt. Just head on over to Instagram, like the @FerrisBuilt page https://www.instagram.com/ferrisbuilt/for one entry and make sure you let me know below! Winner will be announced on 2/1! a Rafflecopter [...]
Chasing Ghosts
I can remember your smile. I recall your laugh. We went on adventures together where we chased imaginary cars and closed restaurants. And you, a different you, I know you but we just met. Every time we see each other it’s like time hasn’t passed. I can see your eyes across the table. The creases in your face when you laugh. And you, another you, I remember your voice, soothing, guiding me through the emotional waves. Helping me stay steady. Also you, another you, we danced across the street together listening to honking cars. I’ll never forget you. All of you. sometimes I try to find you. I’m running, panting, and sweating. But you are somewhere else. I can see you through dirty glass. When I try to get a clearer picture my eyes hurt. You are ghosts who are still living. And it hurts me to think about it. But I accept the pain and I cherish the memories.
I’m scared
I'm scared. Anxiety is paralyzing. I feel like no matter what I do; it's the wrong thing. Being judged is scary. Being me is frightening. It's like I can't think straight. I'm scared of being scared. I feel like I'm naked, standing in front of hundreds of people, and they are picking apart what they don't like about my body. It's like I'm sitting in a creative writing class, and everyone misunderstands my poem. One step forward One hundred steps back. Two leaps backward, 900 jumps in the river. It'll be okay. That's what I tell myself. It's okay, even when it isn't. I will always have words. But it's scary when people read them. What if they don't like what I say? What if they think I'm pretending to be scared when I'm actually afraid. I'm not pretending. I wish I were faking it. I want to be acting a part. Things don't seem real sometimes when my anxiety is this high. I hate it when that happens.
Depression Baths
I hate showering. There, I said it. When I have depression, getting into the shower feels like torture. I can practice all the behavior activation techniques, and use CBT skills, but I can’t seem to clean myself. Living with a mood disorder is a pain in the ass. You want to do things, but you feel paralyzed. That happens to me when I'm experiencing depressive symptoms. I don't have major depressive disorder either. What happens is when I get burnt out from panic attacks or generalized anxiety I get super depressed. I experience common symptoms of depression: loss of interest in the things I once enjoyed, fatigue, feelings of worthlessness, dark thoughts and lack of motivation to shower. So there I am, wanting to clean myself, and feeling scared, lost, and gross. I'm wrapped in a proverbial and real dirty blanket. In the midst of this hygiene crisis, there was a tub at the end of the faucet, or is that the other way around? I remembered that there was another way to wash my body - it’s called “baths.” Sometimes, I get into the pattern of black and white thinking. I envision there’s only one way to practice good personal [...]
And now a word from our old school sponsor: Pad Your Retirement with a Reverse Mortgage
And now...a word from our dope sponsor! Let me say this: I am getting old. I feel more connected to the “old school” part of my blog. I have been thinking about house-buying, and retirement. What the hell is happening to me? Anyway, here’s some sound advise on reverse mortgages. Maybe I will try one. Savings is good! ___________ Pad Your Retirement with a Reverse Mortgage When you hear the word “retirement,” you think of it as a time to live your dream life and fulfil your fantasies. You think of more happy things to do, who to be with, and where to go. It’s a time when you have to focus on what matters the most. However, without money, you can’t live a comfortable post-retirement lifestyle. But don’t feel down if you are at that stage of your life and without any income stream. The solution is to take a reverse mortgage on your home; this is not the traditional loan that leaves you popping pills at night to meet up with stringent deadlines. What Makes a Reverse Mortgage Different from Standard Loans? With the standard mortgage, also known as a short-term loan, you have to make monthly repayments [...]
My brain wants to kill me
My brain wants to kill me. I don’t think it wants me dead, but it’s trying to tie me up. Every time I want to move it stops me. I want to apply for this job. I want to eat a sandwich or ice cream. No, you’re not allowed to do any of that. Sit down and cry. Be quiet. Be a zombie, and hate yourself. But not enough to die. You should be tortured for the rest of your life. Think about the mistakes you’ve made, and harp on them. Keep thinking about how bad you feel about yourself. You definitely fucked up. You hurt so many people. You lied. You’re a fake, and a fraud. Something is definitely wrong with you. Everyone else can keep a job, so why can’t you? Because you’re insecure. You don’t know your worth. And you question yourself, and think that you need to pay for the mistakes you’ve made. It’s your fault, you know? All of it. Everything you try to do inevitably will fail. You might succeed for a while, until other people uncover that you’re lying. And that you can’t keep your shit together. I’m under here. I’m scared of [...]
Therapy Shaming in Couples Counseling
Therapy Shaming Is it too early to get couples counseling? No. Couples counseling isn’t just for people who have been together for years and years. You can go into counseling when you’re having problems with your partner within a period of months. It depends on the relationship, and there’s no right answer as to when you’re supposed to be in therapy with your partner. Every relationship is different, and every connection is unique. Some relationships are instant connections. You might meet someone and hit it off right away. You bond, talk for hours on the phone and find that you’re symbiotic. That’s a beautiful beginning. Then, down the line, you begin to notice differences between the two of you. There are things that make the relationship strained, and you can’t seem to work the issues out. That’s where therapy can help. Making it work When a relationship is important to me, I want to make it work. There have been instances where I've been in intimate relationships, and there have been problems. I'm a huge believer in therapy, so I believed that even though we were in the new stages of things, couples counseling could help us. Unfortunately, I never [...]
I require my therapist to care about me and respect my humanity
What do I want in a therapist? I don’t know what I want in a therapist. When I first started therapy, I had no idea what to expect. My therapist was an older woman, and I’ve mentioned her before on this blog; she was kind, and she listened more than she talked. At the time, that’s what I needed, because there were a lot of thoughts racing through my brain that I couldn’t sort through them. I benefited from therapy, but another thing is that I needed some guidance, and I felt like she didn’t give me as much guidance as I would’ve liked. It was hard because being a teenager is a difficult time, but I’m just glad that I made it into therapy and that my parents found somebody. What are my therapist requirements? I’ve been through so many different modalities of therapy. It’s been a wild ride, and I’ve learned a lot about myself. From psychodynamic to CBT, from Gestalt to psychoanalysis, I’ve learned a lot about myself and how I relate to the world. I’ve decided that I needed to focus on my trauma before anything else. I started EMDR and worked through some painful experiences. After [...]
I want to know everything about you…or do I?
Curiosity When I'm first getting to know a new friend, my curiosity is piqued. I want to know everything about them. I'm interested to hear their stories about childhood, where they grew up, their pets, their siblings, the relationship they had with their parents and how it was for them to be a child. I want to hear about heartbreak, funny stories, and things that they've never told anyone. I love hearing secrets. I love being able to share the thoughts that I hid from people as a child. And I find that there tends to be overlap with many people. Open or closed Sometimes people are mysterious. I have a variety of friends, some of them are opened, and others are closed. I love all of my friends, whether they reveal things about themselves or keep them close to the chest. Depending on what we're talking about, I can be open, or I can keep things under wraps. I understand both ways of being. I find it hard when people are private because it's more of a challenge to get to know them. I've had friends who were slower to open up, and it's more rewarding when they do. [...]
Separation and Renewal
Parting Ways It’s not easy to break up with someone. The words “breakup” sound harsh. Whenever I’ve gone through a breakup, it felt like I was falling apart. Breakups are brutal; you’re losing a piece of your life. I had a dream last night where I shared a heart with a man. I felt connected with this mystery guy, but he was pulling away from me. Out of nowhere, a therapist beamed down from somewhere in the universe. Whether it was another planet or therapist-land, I don’t know, but he insisted that I needed to keep my heart safe. My heart was raw and cracked. I ran my fingers over it, and it was prickly to the touch, and that’s how breaking up feels. It hurts, it’s brutal, and that pain is some of the worst pain I’ve ever felt. With every breakup, I felt like I would never get over that person. They would haunt me for the rest of my life. But that’s not true. Eventually, I would heal. Breakups are painful During past breakups, I wished that I could press the fast forward button. I prayed for a way to push through the pain, and get better. [...]
Making Art Heals Me
Making Art Heals Me Sometimes I’m tired of talking about myself in therapy. It's exhausting, and I feel like I'm talking in circles. How much can I talk about my childhood, heartbroken adolescence, and fragmented adulthood? I know that therapy helps, but it can feel draining. Since I was 15, I’ve been through many different kinds of mental health treatment including psychodynamic therapy, gestalt therapy, psychoanalysis, CBT, and EMDR. It's been exciting learning about myself in these various forms of treatment. Each of them taught me a variety of emotional skills. Emotional exhaustion leads to creativity Despite how much I learned by working out my issues in therapy, there have been times when I've been straight up emotionally exhausted. I’m tired of talking. Instead of talking, I want to take my feelings and transform them into something creative. That's where making art comes in. Maybe I'm in a play reciting a monologue or doing a scene. Perhaps I'm sitting at a table in my house making a collage, or (most commonly) I'm sitting at my computer writing a story, blog post, or a poem, I feel alive. Creating something makes me want to make more things. Translating feelings into art [...]
Why I Call People On The Phone
I don’t want to be alone because then I have to think and deal with my pain Being alone is emotionally challenging for me. Sometimes I love having time by myself. It helps to reset my introvert brain. Other times, when I’m anxious or panicking, I don’t want to be alone. I’ll look for ways to be around people, so I don’t have to feel those intense emotions. Anxiety can be frightening. There are many times that I don’t want to be alone because when I’m by myself, I have to deal with my emotional pain. I’ll do anything to distract myself from how I feel. “Call a friend.” That's what I think when I start to hurt; when I feel my heart physically hurt. It feels like it’s bleeding from the inside, but that’s not what's happening. It feels like I’m dying inside. When I am alone, and I start to feel that hurt inside of me, I begin to panic. The panic makes me shake, sweat, and feel scared. I don’t want to be frightened and alone. I don’t think anyone would choose to be scared and by themselves. Fighting feelings I know that I have to fight [...]
Massage My Hands and Tell Me I am Beautiful
Massage My Hands and Tell Me I'm Beautiful Relationships can be downright exhausting. It’s difficult dealing with myself and my emotions, and now I also have to deal with someone else and how they feel? I consider myself to be an empathetic person, but there’s a balance between caring about somebody else and how they feel while also prioritizing myself and my emotional needs. It’s difficult because I value myself and I’ve gotten to a place in life where I’ve come to see my inherent worth. I still struggle with anxiety and depression - anxiety being the more prevalent issue - however, I’m able to know that I matter. I Excitement I want to be with somebody who also sees that I’m worth it. That’s willing to fight for me, that’s excited to see me every day. That wants to hug and kiss me. I don’t want to be a source of frustration to anyone. I want the man that I’m with to love my kids and me and see the good in me because I've been told for my entire life that I’m “too much” and I don’t want to feel like that. I want someone to see what’s [...]