No – a very powerful word when applied wisely! It can be hard to say, but I’m learning to say it and for the first time in a long time, I feel as if I’m going with the grain of who I am, rather than against it.

Meditating everyday has seriously changed my life for the better. I’m able to step back and observe my thoughts and catch myself when I’m getting into unhelpful thinking habits. The @Headspace app is fab. I highly recommend it!

I need lots of this, especially this time of year. Time to break out the fairy lights and candles! I’ve bought myself a little fan heater so I can work in the conservatory over the winter as it’s the lightest and brightest room in the house. Over the winter I’m going to try to get outside for walks in daylight too, no matter how cold it is. It’s only a month until the days start getting longer again … roll on Spring!

Learning about my illness and about recovery has given me the tools I need to take control of my life again.

It’s a cliche, but it’s true: recovery is a journey, not a destination, and like all journeys there are bumps in the road, and wrong turns and pit stops, but it’s a journey worth taking.

Mental illness can make you forget who you are.

There was a time when I was hopeless, had no hope, when every day was dark and grey, and life did not seem liveable, but now I have hope. I found it in the everyday – in the sunshine and showers, in the birds in the trees, in the food on my plate, in the laughter of my children, in the sunrise and the sunset. All these simple, little things remind me that life goes on whether it feels liveable or not. Every day I choose hope, because I don’t want to ever be without it again.

No prizes for spotting the deliberate mistake! Looking for everyday things to be grateful for has been a significant part of my recovery. Every day, in my bullet journal, I write down a list of things I am grateful for. I don’t usually go back and read previous entries; it’s the act of taking a moment to think about the day and to write down a few things I’m grateful for that’s important. I tend to do it at the end of the day, or the start of the next day, and it just helps me stay grounded in reality and gives me a little hope that things will be ok.

There’s a lot of gumpf on the interwebs about what foods we should and should be eating, but we all know that a balanced diet is what we need – everything in moderation and a bit of what you fancy does you good. Variation is the key to getting all the nutrients we need for heart, mind and body health. I’m trying to reduce the junk food – cake, crisps, chocolate, biscuits, ice cream etc – in my diet, and increase all the good stuff (see photo). Some days it’s easier than others, especially for a life-long comfort eater like me. But I’m getting there.

This is a mind map from a Recovery College course on nourishing wellness that I attended.

I saw this saying in a bullet journal spread by @bossgirlbujo ages ago, and it’s stuck with me ever since. It’s not about avoiding difficult situations, or not challenging myself, or not confronting things that need to be confronted; it’s about not making life harder for myself. If there’s something that needs to be done there’s probably an easy way and a hard way to do it. There’s running head-on into things like a bull in a china shop, and there’s easing into things like slipping into a warm bath. I’m learning that the second is a better way for me and my recovery.