Most of my life I have been told “just get over it” when it comes to the things that bother me. I was always too emotional, I let small stuff get to me, I was sensitive and I am still now when it comes to certain things.
I cry pretty easily, I feel deeply, some would call me weak.
And for that reason I hid behind a wall through most of the difficult moments in my life.
When I was diagnosed with diabetes at 8, I didn’t fully understand what it meant for my life, but I knew I hated it. But it wasn’t something I could change, so I just dealt with it.
When my dad died when I was 13, I couldn’t wrap my head around the sudden loss. I knew school and sports were still important, so I buried a lot of what I felt and tried to keep my life normal with what I still had.
My high school years I faced bullying and other things that affect me to this day, but at the time I put on a brave face and moved forward.
I’ve always seen poor mental health and emotional struggles as something that makes you weak. Others have it worse, so many people deal with this and they are fine, just get over it.
It wasn’t until I lost one of my oldest friends, who I was, and the possibility of a growing family within a month that I realized how much I had to deal with in my short 20 years. By the time I turned 21 I was a person I’m not proud of, on the verge of leaving college, giving up on taking care of my diabetes, and desperate to find happiness in friendships that weren’t serving me in any way.
The summer I was 22 I reached a breaking point. But I had someone who finally gave me the option I had needed my whole life. It’s okay not to be okay. It’s okay to ask for help.
It’s okay to talk to a counselor.
It’s okay to take the medicine you need.
It’s okay.
If we go to the doctor to find out what is wrong when our physical health isn’t at its peak, why isn’t it universally accepted to go to a counselor or therapist when our mental health isn’t at its best?
The stigma surrounding mental health has ended the lives of too many, even some closest to me. And it could have done the same to me if I didn’t have someone who believed in the importance of mental health. Someone who called me out for my destructive habits. Someone who reminded me that your future is always brighter than the darkness of what you have faced.
I know first hand that life can hand you more than you can face, but you don’t have to face it alone.
It’s okay to ask for help.
It’s okay to get help.
It’s okay not to be okay.
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