My journey with mental health has been a long and often difficult one. For as long as I can remember, I’ve struggled with self-esteem issues, feelings of loneliness, and difficulty managing my emotions.
At times these struggles have felt all-consuming. I’ve dealt with severe episodes of anxiety and depression, felt completely paralyzed by fear or sadness, and deal almost daily with the feelings of being overwhelmed by daily responsibilities and stressors. It’s been a monumental challenge to continue pushing forward even when I feel like giving up.
I’m incredibly grateful that over the past few years I’ve had access to professional mental health resources at Ekupholeni Mental Health - they’ve provided me with the tools to cope better on a day-to-day basis, teach me healthier ways to gain insight into my thoughts and talk about how I’m feeling. With their help, I’m learning how to find balance in life again as well as recognize not only the foundation of what’s causing distress but also empowering me to make positive choices around it.
Mental health is something so many people deal with majority in silence - it helps me immensely to be able reflect on my experiences without shame or judgment and talk through them - it helps remind me that we all struggle differently yet ultimately pursue the same goals: acceptance, understanding, healing, growth, resilience… It just takes time but we can do this!