I Just Play Normal on TV
Sunday, December 31, 2023
Looking to 2024
Thursday, December 24, 2015
A New Me, A New Resolution...
3 years ago, I began a blog long since abandoned (well obviously not as I'm writing on it now, but bear with me). And on that New Years Day, I made a resolution, the only resolution that I have ever truly kept: to take more risks, at least one big one each year.
That fateful year saw my entire life upended. Not horribly (although it seemed that way at first), but to reaches beyond my wildest dreams. I was single, unemployed, aimless, but then, through some sort of divine intervention, I found myself seeing and living in places I never thought I would: first Chicago then England.
I never, ever, ever imagined I'd live in England; but here I sit, 3 years later, halfway to my dream of a PhD in a field I am truly passionate about (and would never have been able to pursue in the US...for various reasons). The path since arriving has not always been easy; there has been sadness, heartache, loneliness, and fear. And as I reach the midway point in my postgraduate academic career (as a student, anyway), I am beginning to worry about what comes next. But even though I'll spend the rest of my life paying back the $100,000 it's cost me, I wouldn't give up this experience for the world. Not enough people have the opportunity to live like this, and I am thankful for every moment and every connection I have had.
I'm still living by my 2013 resolution--taking risks, being brave--but my life has changed so much since then that I feel a need to make a new resolution for this "new me." And it needs to be one which I know I'll keep, like the last one. So, no silly things like "lose weight" (although I should), "save money" (although I should), or "quit smoking" (although I should), but one which I know I can really get behind and live up to fully.
To do this, I re-read that first post, and found another theme running through each of my heroes: none of them were afraid to be themselves, whatever that meant, and were their best selves in every way.
What does that mean exactly? Well, it means accepting myself for who I am, flaws and all, and being okay with it. It means figuring out what makes me happiest with myself and living it.
To this end, I needed to ask when was I my happiest with myself? When I wasn't smoking. When I was working out at least 5 times a week. When I was meeting up with friends on Wednesdays for a cheeky drink, on Thursdays to connect with God, and Sundays for a run and brunch. When Murphy and I saw the world together because we could (and I had a car---oh, how I miss driving). When I wasn't worried about my future, because I knew God had a plan for me and I trusted in it fully.
So this, all of this, is what my 2016 resolution is. If I don't achieve it all in this year, that's okay--because loving yourself is a lifelong process. But my goal is to at least work on making way for God and God's plan for me so that I can be the best me and live the best life I can. If the last 3 years are any measure of what I can expect by living this way, what wonders await me in the next 3 years?! I am excited to find out....
Monday, June 22, 2015
Like A Cut Phone Cord....
Wednesday, May 13, 2015
Kicking the Pristiq/Effexor Habit
· Take Your Vitamins!
The most common advice I found others mention was that Omega 3 and Vitamin D (not THAT kind, you dirty minded readers...) was HUGELY helpful in staving off brain zaps and fatigue. I specify Omega 3 because I thought I could use the 3-6-9 complex I already owned and be okay. Nope. Not even a little bit. There isn’t nearly enough 3 in the complex to be of any benefit. You have to take an absurd amount (think 2500mg/day) to counteract the brain malfunctions, so a pure Omega 3 ONLY supplement (plus diet—see next entry) is needed.
I also found that my energy in general was SEVERELY lacking, and so I would suggest some sort of energy supplement. Caffeine is useless unless you rarely drink it to begin with (which hasn’t been the case for me since I was 14), so I chose to take a diet supplement because I wanted to curb my hunger, too, but take whatever you find helps. Experiment a bit, but be careful with what herbs you take because some may interact badly with the Rx; serotonin syndrome is a BAD deal that you want to avoid as much as possible (For this reason, STAY AWAY FROM ST. JOHN’S WORT—until you’ve completely rid yourself of the medication)
· Eat Like a Healthnut
There’s a reason fatty foods are called “comfort foods”; they make you feel safe and comfortable when life is stressful. Unfortunately for me (and possibly you), that was the opposite while tapering off Effexor. Anytime the food I ate had a high fat content (i.e. bacon, gammon steak, sausage, French fries—I live in England), I woke up the next morning feeling like absolute shit. Only when I ate a balanced diet (I feel like such an advertisement saying that phrase, but…) did I function properly the next day. I’m sure there’s some obvious reason for it that has to do with chemistry in the cells or something, but I don’t know what it is (science is like magic to me). Only that it works.
What’s great about this, though, is that if you like salmon and mackerel and sardines, you can get a LOAD of Omega 3 from those sources and kill two birds with one stone. You still have to take the supplements, but not as many and the fish are generally healthy.
· Exercise is Key
I don’t enjoy sounding like a health magazine—I really don’t—but it’s hard not to when it all applies. During the first week, I started doing some interval training for 25 minutes a day. Nothing too hectic but enough to get my endorphins going and my heart pumping. And I felt really good afterward (albeit a bit sore…). The second week, I had some stuff going on and skipped my workout for three days. Every Single Morning After, I woke up feeling terrible. The fact that I combined my lack of exercise with comfort foods probably compounded my terrible and anxious mood, but still. Exercise of some kind is a must to releasing those good hormones which help counteract the bad ones you can’t control, and has the plus side of helping you shave some of those Effexor-induced pounds you probably gained (like me L ).
· Take a Holiday
Now, I need to specify that you should not actually take a family trip somewhere. The idea here is more to limit your stressors rather than increase them, and I’ve often found that vacationing generally adds just as much stress as it releases. At the very least, take some sick leave off work. Don’t do anything different beyond existing (and the above) for a few days because you will be anxious. You will be moody. You won’t be able to focus. You will feel like you are going through menopause (men included) due to the hot and cold flashes and general uncomfortableness you feel in your own skin. You are detoxing, in the truest sense of the term, and it will suck. The above helps some, but I still found myself experiencing aches, pains, tight muscles, and short fuses. Being aware that you aren’t in control helps but only as much as adding a drop of water to the ocean helps raise the tide; you just need to ride it out.
And although I do appreciate people trying to help, for those who suffer from anxiety (like ME!), it’s a scientific fact that mindfulness and trying to be happy just makes things worse. You just have to be honest with yourself, accept that you’ll feel and act like a shitty person for a few days, and hope it ends quickly. Again, the above and below help, but limiting your stressors helps the most, which means you should also be really aware of WHEN you are doing this. I chose the summer because there’s lots of sun (vitamin D!), I wouldn’t be teaching, and I have less to do for my PhD. When I tried to do it last year, I was smack dab in the middle of the most stressful month of my MA WHILE trying to keep an online teaching job. The experience this time has been a hell of a lot more manageable, so that’s something to be aware of.
· Surround Yourself With Support
Again, this is a DUH statement, but you do need it. Let everybody close to you know in advance what you are doing and how it will affect you, and ask for their patience and understanding. Because you will need it. You will need someone who reminds you that you are still a good person even if you are acting like a raging douche on occasion. Because you will act that way and you will hate yourself for it. But having people who know that this isn’t forever, and treating you as such, makes a huge difference.
· Document Your Progress
Although I am a self-proclaimed writer, journaling has always been a difficult task for me. However, deciding to chart my progress via Twitter has really helped (#nomoreRx). Not only did it keep my friends updated on my progress but it also helped me stay aware of what did or didn’t work. I received support and encouraging comments (which, as stated above, is essential), but I also was able to reflect on the fact that things were getting better. It may not feel like it at the time, but I know that when this is all said and done (i.e. I am completely off the medication), I will be able to look back and see that I actually accomplished something huge. And that sense of accomplishment will be absolutely vital to feeling like you are moving in the right direction.
Thursday, October 23, 2014
In Response to my Own Heart
It's like a depressing holiday... |
Not MY bubble bath but just know British Boyfriend did this. For me. And it was awesome. |
Seriously, I know many of you are scoffing or rolling your eyes, but I am treading unfamiliar terrain here, and my brain, rather than turn its condemnation on British Boyfriend (because it can’t), has reverted to reminding me of my past hurts. My heart is open and willing and screaming with excitement, but my brain, in an effort to keep me safe, has brought back all those old emotions of self-hatred. It keeps reminding me how I didn’t measure up before in an effort to make me hold back, to cause some self-fulfilling prophecy where I end up alone again. Because sadness is easier.
Where IS that other shoe...? |
"Smiley faces all around!" |
Wednesday, October 22, 2014
A Little Bit of Me...
The logical part of me wants to delete this poem because it's just a reflection of how I can't let go of past hurts. But then, the more I fight it, the more entrenched those hurts become. Maybe by penning and publishing this, I can finally let them free, let them go, let them haunt some other space besides my head and my heart. So, here it is:
I know because you're there
In the way I remember your name
Through those half-forced sighs
In the way I remember my body
Slumped in self-defeat
In the way I remember my cries
Muffled among my tears
In the way I remember waiting for you
Only to be joined by silence
Fifteen years
Of equating “love” and “sex”
Fifteen years
Of disappearing into you
Fifteen years
Of a thousand “What if"s
What if I were…
…thinner?
…taller?
…smarter?
…dumber?
…darker?
…frailer?
…wilder?
…weaker?
…better?
…perfect?
But I never could be,
Always aspiring to whatever form
Of perfection you desired.
You, who loved stick thin beauties with dark hair,
And you, who loved pale Southern belles.
You, who loved smart girls,
As long as they weren’t smarter than you,
And you who loved everyone…
But me.
And those are just the major players;
There were others.
Smaller ones
Whose tiny flames
Still added to my angry fire,
My lonely future.
Angry because I cannot trust
Lonely because I cannot live.
I know
Because you’re there
Every time something goes wrong
Every time I think I’m happy
You’re there,
You’re all there,
To remind me
How imperfect I am
And how, nobody
Not one person
Can love me;
Not
Even
Me.
Again, this is not meant to get comforting comments or exclamations of "It's okay!" or "Get over it!"; my own brain berates me with those phrases enough as it is. No, this is purely meant to send these negative emotions into the ether in hopes of ridding myself of them forever. Yes, I know it's not entirely fair what I've written, and yes, I know I'm being melodramatic, but it's my blog, my poem, MY feelings, so please don't demean them. Again, my brain does that enough as it is.
Thank you for reading, though; however you may feel about it...
Saturday, September 27, 2014
Looking back....
And that's how my chapter 3 ended... |
I was really hoping it'd be a flip flop... |
I said FIGURATIVE!!!!! |