Mental Illness Isn't Rare... So Why Don't We Talk About It?

I'm writing this post because I know that Bell did a campaign last year talking about mental illness and depression... Then it seemed that as soon as the month was over, 

WHOOSH! MENTAL ILLNESS DISAPPEARED! 

Well, at least that's what it felt like to read most online sites. No one seems to want to talk about it anymore... Because it isn't "sexy". 

I'm hoping to shed light on what mental illness, or rather what I'd like to call mental wellness looks like in the everyday life.

Its when you know you have that "crazy" aunt or uncle that everyone says is "touched"... But you know that person as the fun aunt or uncle who speaks his/her mind and always brings joy to the house.

Its when all of a sudden, your sister or cousin goes through that bout of depression, and couldn't get up out of bed for three months on end, and had to take sick leave. And this was all "blamed" on a break-up or some other major traumatic event in one's life.

Or, in my example, it was me, not realizing that I was going through a "spell" (aka a crazy depressed period), until I looked back on my life at that time. I realized that none of the pictures I took showed me smiling, I'd aged by at least 20 years in only 1 year, and gained enough weight to make me resemble what I can only imagine would be myself in an alternate universe! 

Because I grew up in a family where mental illness was quite common, I knew that I had to really make sure my lifestyle allowed for me to always have my wits about me, and have a heightened level of awareness. 

Might you be lacking mental wellness? Keep in mind that it can be something as simple as depression or seasonal affective disorder. If you have read this and want to get well, here are a few simple things you can do : 

• DO NOT SUFFER IN SILENCE - Please reach out to someone you love and trust, who you can be real, open and honest with, and ask them to help you through what you're going through. I know if I had done so, it wouldn't have taken me so long to come back to life.

• Eat Healthy - Sometimes that sluggish feeling, or not feeling so well about ourselves is actually caused by chemical and neurological imbalances! All those toxins floating around in our body keeps our mental faculties from working properly. Eating balanced, healthy meals (you can always sign up to my free program to find great resources!) helps keep you positive, mentally well and stable, and doing whats best for you and those around you

• Find an expert and ask questions - Whether its someone trusted in your network that has helped other recover, or whether you get a referral from someone like me, never be afraid to ask questions. Fear of asking questions keeps people sick and suffering, and in pain. Folks like us who are all about helping people heal will always do our very best to make sure you get the help you need. 

I'm hoping that the more of my own personal stories about these "tough" subjects, the more others come out and speak about it. I have no more shame about this in my life. There also is no more lingering pain. I've forgiven myself for "falling into despair". Now this is my chance to help others, so that they know they are definitely not alone. 

What else can I give so I can help you heal from your pain? I'm all ears :).

What's YOUR Body Saying?

When I was recently in Jordan, I felt like I became the Queen of parlour tricks! I would be sat down in front of people, and asked to "read" them.

I'm not pyschic... (well , I am, but that's a whole other story).

I'm going to show you how to accurately read people in a few quick steps:

• The health of their body - does their skin glow? Is their hair shiny and strong? what about their nails, are they white and strong, or soft and brittle? Physical well-being is always exhibited through the general state of the skin, eyes, hair and nails of a person.


• The health of their emotional state - does the person have bags under their eyes? Do they have frown lines?  Is their mouth pointing down when they're at rest? Does the person roll their eyes and sigh a lot? These are easy ways to tell if a person "disproves" of people and things a lot and are clear signs they are living with stressed relationships. Emotional well-being is always exhibited through healthy or unhealthy relationships with others.


• The health of their mental state - does the person cross their arms? Do you have to strain to hear a person because they speak softly? Do people use negative language about themselves - "I need to lose a few pounds", "Sorry I look so badly today". Does the person slouch, or do they stand straight? Mental well-being is always exhibited by watching a person's relationship with themselves.


• The health of their spiritual state - does this person have an air of confidence? Do they look like they are truly happy? Are they comfortable in their own skin? Spiritual well-being connected to a person's ability to be their unique, divine purpose in life and shows it in their comfortability to just BE. It is also strongly exhibited by a person's connection the planet as a whole.
  

When you master this skill of reading people, you learn to get accurate readings about where a person is in their life in under 60 seconds. You can see why it can be so amazing right?
 
I'm not showing you how I do this so you can be the master at judging all of those who you come into contact with (that's what we're so used to doing!). I'm telling this so that you can master being empathetic to all those you come across in your life. When you can tell what issues a person is dealing with in their life, you actually learn to judge them less harshly, and learn to walk a mile in their shoes.

I do this entire process for a living. And I wouldn't trade what I do for all the money in the world. It's important that you know where my work starts from, and this is it.... and it always ends (well, it doesn't really end, does it?) with LOVE.

So now that you know what I see when I see you, what is it that YOU see in YOURSELF?