It’s been a hot minute since we’ve had a Mental Health Monday. A lot of things have changed within the past couple of months and, instead of writing an article about mental health, I figured we can use this time as a check-in.
What’s going on with me
It’s no secret I’ve been in hiding the past year or so. I felt awful putting my blog on hiatus but there was no sense in me continuing to write blog posts when I had no ideas, no motivation, and no means to interact in the comments. Everything felt like a chore. I’ve missed you guys and I mean no offense to anyone who reads and supports my work, but it was hard to keep up with it all for a while.
I tried to come back a couple of times, but those times only resulted in me writing a, “I’m Back!” post and then disappearing for another month or two. I eventually decided to save it for January – new month, new year, a new decade. Makes sense, right?
Except life doesn’t exactly take into account the date. If you’re having a rough time, it’s not all going to go away simply because a month or the year has come to an end. What you put off today will still be there tomorrow. Bottled up feelings and energy will be there when you wake up the next morning.
It’s easy to say, “There are three days left of the month and it’s been a wash. Let me make plans for the following month and I’ll start fresh on the first.”
Honestly, this works sometimes. But a lot can happen in those three days whether you decide to start early or wait to begin that list. If you wait, something else might come up and you’ll find yourself saying the same thing a month from now.
I worked on stuff. I did things behind the scenes to prep the blog and my other creative projects for 2020. When 2020 came, I wasn’t ready to get back into it. There was still behind-the-scenes work to be done and I continued that instead.
Back to blogging
They always say it’s hard to get back into the swing of things after a long hiatus. For example, if you’re sick and need to miss school for a week. It’s so hard to go back the following Monday morning. Your classmates bombard you with questions, you have a ton of make-up work to do, and you need to get back into your routine of waking up early and doing homework in the afternoons.
I think that was partly my feeling when I thought of blogging again. I wasn’t ready to commit to a daily schedule again. Between brainstorming content, writing the content, creating graphics, social media scheduling, reading and replying to comments, and everything in between on top of all my other projects.
Needless to say, I changed that. I may still be creating daily content but most of it isn’t something I need to do daily. My social media schedule has lessened. If I skip a day here or there of publishing a blog post, then so be it. I won’t beat myself up over it.
Weekly Mental Health Monday
With all that said, Mental Health Monday is now a weekly feature on the blog instead of monthly. It sounds backward considering I said I was going to lessen my content and I’m moving a monthly feature to weekly, but I think this is needed.
Not just for me, but for you guys as well.
What’s happening with the world
Aside from it being hard to get back into the swing of things in January, something else happened that month (which I’ll speak about in a separate Mental Health Monday post soon – nothing too alarming, everything is okay) and also COVID-19 took over the world.
By the time the virus got to where I live, it was late February/early March. (I think. I’ve lost track of all days at this point.) The news constantly updates. Something is changing every moment of every day. It’s hard to keep track of it all and yet, there are days when I try not to keep track of it all. When this all started I found myself constantly refreshing Twitter. Every time the governor was on TV, I sat down and watched or asked my mom for an update.
I never watch the news. The news is depressing and it freaks me out.
Everything has been turned upside. I lost my nannying job since the kids aren’t in school and both parents are now working from home for the time being. I miss the kids, of course, and it is nice to have those extra hours added to my day so I can work on my business and creative projects. However, I’m a freelance writer, I’m in business for myself. I still nanny because it’s a steady stream of income for me and I’ve lost that.
My two closest friends got laid off from their jobs. My mom is home but my sister and dad are considered “essential” workers. Who knows what they’re coming in contact with or what they’re bringing home. Our routines are totally up in the air right now.
We’re lucky enough that no one is sick and we don’t know anyone who is sick, but we’re still staying away from each other as much as possible. My cousins can no longer come over for dinner. My uncle gave my mom flowers the other day but he didn’t come inside the house.
We’re living in weird times. It’s unnerving and it’s sad.
I don’t know how long this is going to last. I do know that even when the virus has had enough, the effects from it will linger on for a while. I hope we’ll be much better, kinder people when this is all over.
Welcome back, Mental Health Monday
With that said, this feature needed to come back. We need to stick together, be kind to one another, and check in on our friends (real-life and internet), family, and neighbors.
I’m thinking the first Mental Health Monday of each month will be a short and sweet check-in post. Similar to this one, but much shorter and less of a rant. (I felt the need to explain myself about where I’ve been and what I want to do with this feature.)
I’d like for everyone to keep in touch and keep each other’s spirits up. I want this all the time too, not just because a virus has been spreading through the world. Hopefully, this will help someone out there.
How are you guys?
So, let’s check in with one another. How are you guys doing? What have you been up to? I hope you’re all safe and healthy. Let me know in the comments below and we’ll catch up. If you need to talk, I’m here.
