My Mental Health Safe Haven

 Okay, so I am absolutely LOVING these submissions. To everyone who is brave enough to share a bit about what they struggle with, just know that you are helping SO many people be brave enough to get help. Thank you everyone for your contribution! Be kind to people, you don't know what they're going through. ♡ Saige Aisha Gutiérrez Growing up with mental illness. Not being able to hang out with the other kids because they said you’re too sad to be around, having a stutter that you developed because you’re scared of talking to people but all the kids do is laugh at you and call you names. Having body issues from age 11 because you’re being called fat for being a little bit bigger than the other girls. To writing a note to leave for your family to find in grade 6. My “friends” called me little Eeyore because of how much I reminded them of the depressed Winnie the Pooh character. From having depression, anxiety, paranoia, eating disorder all before the age of 16. Mental health is a

 Hi everyone! Today's post is very special because I've gathered the stories of people from all walks of life. These people are from all over the world, and it goes to show that mental illness does not discriminate. Thank you for all the incredible people who shared. Stay tuned for the next part of this series! Be kind to people, you don't know what they're going through. ♡ Saige Taryn Barnes-Roberts I think, as a society, we are confused about what mental health is and especially the difference between good mental health and bad mental health. Someone can have a good day and still have bad mental health, just like someone who has good mental health can have a bad day. Mental health also has a lot to do with how someone is affected or reacts to these good or bad days. I have struggled with my mental health for many years. I have multiple mental illnesses, recently I have been really struggling with anorexia and unstable moods. I spent last summer in the hospital for my

 Exam Anxiety can be absolutely horrible. From my experience, I would stay up all night thinking about the test, even if it was just a small quiz. I would put so much pressure on myself to be perfect that I'd eventually forget about the real importance behind exams... which is nothing! You can't let a piece of paper determine your worth, or let it dictate whether you struggle. They are just a small way to measure your learning. There are many other ways to measure that too - through discussions and such - so you can't hold all the importance on a small assessment.  Take a look at the slides below. I've included some Dialectical Behavioral Therapy skills, which have helped me in the past. I will make another post that goes into more depth about these! Be kind to people, you don't know what they're going through. ♡ Saige

 February 1st - 7th was Eating Disorder Awareness Week. As a person who has struggled with an eating disorder myself, I truly feel for anyone who has to experience it. There's a stereotype that eating disorders only fit one person - teenaged, skinny, white girls - and while there are people who fit that stereotype, the majority of sufferers don't. There are many different eating disorders, not just anorexia. People can be any shape or size; they are called EATING disorders NOT weight disorders. People of all genders can struggle, and any age as well. Some people are hospitalized, some people aren't. Not everyone is tube fed, some people don't even have a diagnosis. Regardless of these factors, every. single. eating. disorder. is. valid. When I was in my first week of inpatient treatment, there was an older woman there. Let's call her Rose. Rose was so kind to me, as she called herself the "Recovery Grandma". She was only there for a week into my stay, but

 Hi! It's nice to meet you!  My name is Saige. For the past year, I've had challenges with a multitude of mental health concerns, including anorexia, depression, anxiety, and suicidality. While I was struggling, often in silence, I would turn to recovery blogs, vlogs, and Instagram accounts as motivation to keep on going, to keep actively trying to recover. Those pages saved me in some of my darkest times, so here I am, trying to do the same.  I hope to share my story and spread awareness about mental illness, breaking the stigma. If you're someone out there who is also faced with similar issues, or even if you're just here to learn more about mental health and what that means for you, you've come to the right place.