Busy buzzing mind bees…
I’ve had a lot on my mind of late (when do I not?). It seems never ending; the continual cycle of things to do, remember, etc, etc. No wonder i’m mentally drained a lot!
I’d recently attended an appointment with my university’s mental health worker (who is a fabulous lady), told her all about the four weeks we’d not seen one another over xmas and after furiously scribbling down notes, gave me a mused expression. “You’re the busiest person I know AND you have a mental health condition. How have you not exploded?”
I unfortunately go through my life feeling somewhat unproductive, never really achieving anything, yet in reality - she’s right.
I’m at uni sudying a science course, i’m trying to run a society and i’m a club photographer on weekends. Financially atm i’m crippled, I’ve just moved house and my diet could do with some work as most days i’m just about eating two meals worth a day. Not forgetting to mention that depression causes my concentration and focus to be somewhat shot.
I am busy. I AM BUSY, but I always feel like i’m lazy, unproductive, unreliable, reaching for the unobtainable and barely flying by the seat of my pants.
I’ve come to realise i’m spreading myself too thinly. I’m not superwoman. I need a workload where I can achieve goals, not weigh myself down to the point of despair. I AM NOT LAZY.
Herein lies another bee in my bonnet: My lack of money linked in with lack of job/lazyness…
I mentioned my concentration span before. It doesn’t stop me from getting a job, but it does detract from my ability to complete my uni work on time or to a high standard that i’m capable of. I’d tried to explain this to a good friend when they were advising me to get a job and couldn’t quite comprehend it.
I suppose I should give up the photography and get a weekend job (if in the current climate that is possible), but the reason i’m reluctant to is because it’s one of the only things that gets me out of the house. I enjoy taking photos and I have the opportunity to socialise with people, bringing me out of my social anxiety that was once terribly crippling. I spent the good part of a year barely leaving my flat, so anything that halts this behaviour, i’m glad of.
I guess one reason i’ve not exploded is because i’m on medication. In all honesty, without it I think I would have had a nervous breakdown before now. Another being that I’ve learnt to talk about it, not hide and feel shunned by the stigma. I’ve come to terms with the fact that I suffer from a mental health disorder. Like any other illness, why can’t I talk about it? It doesn’t mean I’m wrong in some way. I just need help to get back on track, on my own feet again.
The best realisation out of all of this shit though? Without the support of my friends and my mother, I probably would not be where I am right now.