Let’s Start Talking

Mental Health Awareness Month by Kendra Kantor

May is the official Mental Health Awareness Month.

I recorded a short (11 minutes) audio to talk about mental health month and what you can do to help support and promote awareness.

If you can’t (or don’t want to) listen to the above audio, I’ve written out some of the most important take-away’s to share.

It’s a perfect time to start spreading the word, start talking, start educating, start seeking help you need for your mental health, your mental illness, your friends and family and loved ones. For those suffering and need help.

Mental illness affects 1 in 4 adults. Think about that. If you know 4 people, at least 1 of them have some sort of mental illness. That number is staggering.

There are a lot of people not receiving help. It’s too expensive, it’s too hard to find, the mental illness is too consuming and they can’t get out of bed to find support. If you know someone like that, someone you can see if suffering but you know they are not seeing a doctor or getting therapy or being proactive, those are the kind of people that need your help. Those are the kind of people I want to help.

I’ve been there. About a year and a half ago, a combination of pre existing depression, panic disorder, a newborn and ppd. I could barely function and I fought against getting help.I thought it would never work so what was the point? Because I was wrong. The most important part of my recovery was that I had support, I had people saying hey you need help, let me make the phone call for you.

If you know someone who seems to have a mental illnesses, someone who has spoken out to you and said, this is hard. Be the friend who says, I see that you are suffering, let me help you. Let me call the doctor, let me take you to the doctor, I will drive you and sit with you.

Be the person who fights against the bullying and the stigma. Tell your friends it sucks to feel this way but it doesn’t make you a bad person.

People with mental illness deserve more love, more support. If we could get as much love and support as possible, if we all had the care that we needed instead of bullying and negative comments and lack of support…all of those things hinder the process. It doesn’t make it easier to ask for help.

That’s why I do what I do. People don’t see others talking out. It’s hard, it’s scary to admit you have a mental illness and need help but it’s an essential to the process of recovery.

What can you do?

-Wear green, make your social media green. Green is the color we use to promote awareness this month.

-Donate time or money.

-Donate to The Balanced Mind
Here is a list of a ton of mental health charities,
Go on gofundme (or similar) and donate some money to causes about mental illness.

–Write a blog post about mental health and awareness. If you have a mental illness and haven’t ever shared it. Be brave and share it. Maybe you say, I need help, I am getting help, I’m in recovery, I’m hitting rock bottom. Just get up there and be honest and truthful.

Here are some blog posts of mine you should check out:

What To Do When a Loved One Has a Mental Illness * I Think I Have a Mental Illness Free Guide * Why I Blog About Mental Health * The Importance of Honoring The Self and Taking Time for Wellness * When Getting Healthy Doesn’t Look Like How the Experts Say You “Should” Do It * Why It’s Important to Determine Your Personal Triggers and How to Get Started * Your Story Is Important, Too * Don’t Forget to Look For The Positives In All Situations

The point to hit home, the big takeaway this month is: Talk about it. Be positive, be supportive. Let’s bring this to the forefront of people’s minds. Let’s start talking.

♥Kendra

Share: What are you doing to spread awareness about mental health? Do you or one of your loved ones have a mental illness? If you have a blog or wrote about your mental health, share links in the comments below.

05/09/2014
Mental Health Wellness | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Thoughts

A Detailed Look At Feeling Fulfilled After Losing Your Passion: Live Your Life

An Detailed Look At Feeling Fulfilled After Losing Your Passion: Live Your Life by Kendra Kantor

One of the most popular posts on my blog over the years was one I wrote in 2012 called “5 Ways To Feel Fulfilled After Losing Your Passion”. I wrote this from a place of experience and in the middle of a huge transition. I had recently dropped out of art school and decided that I wasn’t going to pursue photography as a career. It had been my passion since I was 13 so to suddenly be without a goal in my life, without direction was so hard.

I wasn’t working and so most days, I puttered around the house, sat on the computer or tried so so hard to figure out what I wanted to be when I grew up. I felt so disappointed and un-fulfilled and as I worked towards being happy and myself instead of figuring out how to get a career and make money, I learned how to be fulfilled when the passion and dream I had grew to love was gone.

It’s been several years now since I lost my dream of being a photographer and since I wrote that original post. And now my life is filed with purpose and passion in so many ways. Over the next few months, I want to expand on my original list, share each of the 5 ways to feel fulfilled in more depth and from a newer view point.

Take some time.

Don’t even think about it for a few days, a week…a month even. Let yourself relax and just enjoy what life is giving you. I know, it might not be what you had imagined, but there is still good in it.

I know that in the moment, this kind of seems like an impossibility. Depending on your situation, you are either in college and have to pick a major now now now. Or you need to find a job so you can keep the roof over your house or you’re stuck in a job that leaves you grumpy and wanting more. Or like me, you’re staying at home, alone with your thoughts and wishing for more.

Ignore the fact that you don’t currently have a 10, 5 or even 1 year goal for your life. Just live. Experience things. Focus on the day to day and how you can enjoy things in the moment.

For me, I got pregnant and that threw my whole world for a loop. I pretty much completely forgot that I felt the need to figure out something else to do with my life. Sure, I knew I wanted to be more than a mother at some point, but I let myself live, experience my pregnancy and newborn and try to survive my depression and anxiety. I stopped putting pressure on myself as much. I let myself feel free to try things and experience without feeling like everything I did had to be about where I was going to end up in 5 years.

Maybe you’re like I was and on top of not having a passion to focus on, you are also dealing with mental or physical health problems. Now would be a perfect time to address these problems. Go to a doctor, see a mentor or coach, research a healthy eating plan, start an exercise routine that lights you up (hey, pole dancing is pretty fun!). Do something proactive for yourself right now.

You never know where you life will take you. You never know what you discover about yourself if you just live, go grocery shopping, take hiking trips, visit with friends, paint a house.

♥Kendra

Share: How have you coped after losing your passion or career goals in life? What have you done to experience life and fill up your time so that you can continue to feel fulfilled?

05/06/2014
Life, Like a Bird | Tagged , , , , , | Thoughts(1)

Franz Kafka and Anaïs Nin On Keeping a Journal (Challenge Starts Monday!)

Franz Kafka and Anaïs Nin On Keeping a Journal (Free Challenge Starts Monday!) by Kendra Kantor

“One advantage in keeping a diary is that you become aware with reassuring clarity of the changes which you constantly suffer and which in a general way are naturally believed, surmised, and admitted by you, but which you’ll unconsciously deny when it comes to the point of gaining hope or peace from such an admission. In the diary you find proof that in situations which today would seem unbearable, you lived, looked around and wrote down observations, that this right hand moved then as it does today, when we may be wiser because we are able to look back upon our former condition, and for that very reason have got to admit the courage of our earlier striving in which we persisted even in sheer ignorance.” Franz Kafka – From Diaries, 1910-1923.

“The diary taught me that it is in the moments of emotional crisis that human beings reveal themselves most accurately. I learned to choose the heightened moments because they are the moments of revelation.” Anaïs Nin’s essay “On Writing,” 1947.

I want to help you (yes,YOU!) on your journey to wellness…
I’ve created a 6 day free challenge called “Intro To (art) Journaling For Your Wellness”

Intro To (art) Journaling For Your Wellness Free Challenge by Kendra Kantor

This 6 day free challenge was born out of wanting to help women jump start their path to wellness and teach a little about journaling in all forms. This challenge is for any women looking to start an journal practice and feel guided to use this as a part of their wellness journey.

There will be 6 prompts spread out over a 2 week period, as well as 2 technique tutorials to learn from. This free challenge includes a private space for you to share your pages, talk about journaling and wellness and make connections.

My new free challenge officially launches on May 5th! That’s Monday, if you didn’t know!

Sign ups are now closed! This course will be offered again in the future so check back for updates.

Spread the word with these tweets:
(copy and paste the text or click the “tweet! tweet!” link)

I’m ready to start journaling for my wellness! http://eepurl.com/R2KDD Join me for @likeabirdstudio FREE challenging starting May 5th! Tweet! Tweet!

No Way! @likeabirdstudio is running a FREE #artjournal challenge starting May 5th http://eepurl.com/R2KDD I’m all signed up! Tweet! Tweet!

There is no better place to start your #wellness journey than in a journal. @likeabirdstudio FREE challenging starting May 5th! Tweet! Tweet!

 

♥Kendra Share: Do you have a journal practice? How do you us it on your journey to wellness?

 

05/02/2014
Free Offerings, Like a Bird | Tagged , , , , , , , | Thoughts