By: Olivia Santeusanio
As someone who deals with mental health challenges, I've been through a lot. When I was 11 years old, I got a severe concussion. It triggered a lot of depression and anxiety. For 5 months I had a non-stop headache and felt dizzy. I was out of school for a while and I couldn’t focus at all. When I was finally cured, I was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. I had panic attacks daily, for the strangest reasons.
I've come a long way using many tools like going to a therapist and using her strategies and techniques. That's why I want to remind you that you are not alone! More than 20% of teenagers suffer from mental health.
In this blog post, I will give you some tips and some advice on how to deal with some of your challenges.
Here are my TIPS on how to feel less anxious:
Go for a walk. You can walk alone or with your dog if you have one! I take my dog for a walk when I am anxious and it helps a lot.
Play with your pets. When I feel stressed, I play fetch with dog and pet her. It’s perfect because it reduces my stress and makes her happy, too!
Journal daily. This helps to increase positivity and mindfulness. Before bed is my favourite time to work on myself and take care of myself. Self-care is very important to me.
TALK!!!! Don't bottle up your feelings, find someone you're comfortable with and just express yourself!!! If you don't have that special someone, feel free to ask us ANYTHING!! This is a judge free zone! I talk with my family and my therapist. I feel absolutely amazing once I let everything out.
~Mental Health Awareness ~
Many teenagers these days feel depressed or sad. You may feel like you are not
good enough, feel anxious or feel scared. All of this is mental health.
A good example I can share about myself is that I’m short. I’m 4’11 and I'm going to high school. I often feel pressured to prove that I am more than that. I'm always the shortest one at school, so people may think I'm not strong. Though, in reality, I'm stronger than some of the other taller students.
So, we need to look on the bright side in any situation. Every person is unique. The outside doesn’t matter, it's the inside that counts. We need to believe in ourselves.
One of the biggest pieces of advice I can give is to always be yourself and not pretend to be anybody else. Giving people advice and motivating others is something I love to do. I can’t wait to share my journey with you.
~ I believe in you. Believe in yourself! Be positive. ~