February 2019 Takeaway

February is almost over and since I rather liked the process of writing and reflecting on January, I decided to journal my thoughts on February as a month. Overall, this has been a pretty decent month with a few hiccups, as is with life, but nonetheless, this month has left me a bit wiser. Here is my learning from the second month of the year.

1. Take a break, take a breather: So, I did go a bit overboard when it came to work this month, only to realize I needed to look after myself first in order to be a whole functioning adult: mentally, emotionally and physically. I know we all have the glorious idea of hustling hard, but in the process, we forget that rest and recuperation is important too. Lesson learned. Rest is a necessity or a burnout is inevitable.
2. It is okay to speak your truth: Your voice, your truth. If you feel harassed at work, speak up. If you find yourself overwhelmed and no one to help you, say it loud and clear. Is your workplace toxic, are the people you work with energy vampires? If this is your truth, say it. No one can stop you from voicing your opinion, because, at the end of the day, that is your truth. Say what you have to without any fear.
3. It is alright to cry: So, crying. An emotion many are afraid of, including me. But this month has taught me that it is acceptable to cry and let all the emotions out. Crying is therapeutic and it releases the stress the body is internally undergoing. If you prefer crying alone, that works. If you like having someone by your side while you create a mini Niagra Falls, that works too. It is never a waste to let some steam off through the tear duct.
4. Check in with yourself: In a world so busy, we often forget to check-in with ourselves to see how we really are doing. I neglected to do it this month and the end result was me feeling emotionally drained, mentally exhausted and spiritually removed. Your mental health should be your number one priority. Make sure the people you interact with have got it crystal clear.

These were a few of my takeaways for the second month of 2019. Which one resonates with you? Are there a few you have to add? Please feel free to do so in the comments below.

Have we forgotten how to fill our emotional tanks?

Before we get into anything and you reach the bottom of the post without many takeaways, please do understand that we are all human and would love a little TLC every now and then. Yes, including the ones who have been fiercely independent and think they need no one to confide in or turn to. This post comes from a very raw place as I did find myself forgetting to fill the emotional tank. So, if you find yourself or someone you love and are close to, running low, do not hesitate to reach out and help.

Those of you who know me understand that I march forward and even though I am a big advocate on mental health, there have been times and one so recently that I forgot to check in with myself. The end result: a big emotional meltdown. This made me realize that we have been so busy pursuing life, money, luxury, success, fortune, and fame that more often than not, we forget what our core values are, what we battle against and in doing so, ironically, life, the universe ends up giving us the same lessons we dish out to others.

There are reasons why we neglect mental health. Mostly it is because of the stigma attached to mental health. No one really talks about depression, burnouts, emotional exhaustion because people think they will be branded as someone “loco”, someone was not fit enough for their organization and sadly, it is true. Many of us choose to keep it out because we fear losing friends, close relations and most importantly jobs. Something that keeps us going, we like seeing our bank account appreciating, without a job, that is not really possible, is it? So, we do what we have been told. Suppress it. Do not let it show. There are people watching every move. If they find you are exhausted, God forbid!

Social media is another reason why we forget to feed our souls. We are so busy comparing our bloopers reel to everyone else’s highlight reels, we forget that we too have wonderful movies unseen. Unseen by the same people who created it, us. It is really regretful when we start comparing our lives to everyone else’s. There is no point in doing that. Social media is increasingly making it more difficult to disconnect from the world and connect with ourselves. Unless we decide to use social media productively, and every other resource at our disposal correctly, news will always have a section of people in their early 20s and 30s committing suicide. Only because we many to connect to and yet no one to connect with.

Work stress is another factor we tend to forget to look after ourselves. We are so involved in wanting to make money, we forget to make time. Time to bond, time to laugh, time to check in and see whether we are getting by fine or are we pretending to be okay? In fooling the world, we end up fooling ourselves the most. After all, we are who we reflect the world. If the world thinks we are fine, we are fine. The biggest lie ever told is, “I am okay.” While work is important, it is imperative to carve out a schedule where you do absolutely nothing. Just kick back and relax. Watch Netflix without guilt, eat all the chocolate you want and like. It is not so bad, really. But then again, we are conditioned to think and believe that if we do not utilize all the 24 hours appropriately, we are nothing but lazy, sloth-like and lethargic. I call bullsh*t on that. If anything, I have learned is to take time out and relax and not feel bad about it.

It is safe to say that we have forgotten to fill our emotional tanks, as a result of which, there are episodes of crying, lashing out, being irritable and not wanting to do anything about it. It is okay to cry, but even better is seeking out help, talking to someone, checking in with yourself, understanding yourself and know when to stop pushing yourself. Take a break, come back stronger and fight on. It is always good to take a break and live to fight another day rather than going into battle and getting yourself killed like a fool. Your needs matter too. So do mine and so does everybody else’s. Emotional and mental breaks are necessary. Lesson learned. This post was a reminder for me to take a deep breathe, a break and live to conquer another mountain. One day at a time.