Being a person who struggles with mental health issues, managing stress is essential to maintaining my life. I didn’t always have good coping skills and my life was chaotic and unstable. I was in and out of psychiatric hospitals since I was a teenager.

I had to make a decision to want to get better. I had always said nothing will get better, but it wasn’t until I learned that getting better was a choice. It would take hard work on my part. I couldn’t keep waiting for my life to improve, I had to work for that improvement.

Over the last several years, I have been choosing to work on myself and have come a long way in my stability. I take my medication consistently, try to eat healthy, and exercise regularly.

I am diagnosed with ADHD, bipolar disorder, and dissociative identity disorder. My mornings are tough before my ADHD medication kicks in, but I try my best to get through it because I know my thoughts and feelings will settle when it kicks in.

But I also have developed strategies to help manage the stress. Going for a brisk walk to burn excess energy, drinking a cup of herbal tea to take the tension down a notch, taking a hot shower, using my weighted blanket to contain the anxiety, and journaling if I can.

It isn’t simply lack of focus, restlessness, and agitation that are the symptoms of ADHD that I deal with. I also deal with anxiety, mood instability, flashbacks and body memories, and lost time. So, these strategies to manage my stress are vital for being able to function on a daily basis.

I can’t say that every day is smooth sailing. Sometimes I am riding through raging seas, or climbing through rocky terrain. I have good moments and bad moments, but I have a toolbox of skills that help me navigate through it all. 

I can proudly say I have not been admitted to a psychiatric hospital in 8-9 years, I am taking my medication regularly, and choosing to get better each and every day.