Doing What You Can & Your Personal Well-Being

I was seriously hoping to travel to Oregon to see my BFF and a brother this year. I haven’t seen my BFF in ages and my brother is getting up in years, so it’s important to SEE these people.

I think about these, relatively speaking, small inconveniences, and several emotions rush over me.  Pain, hopelessness, helplessness and sorrow. I find myself grieving for a world that seems, every day, to be pushed further off the edge of the cliff, about to fall into the vast abyss of extinction. 

It’s hard to reconcile what’s happening in the world right now, not just with COVID, but the natural disasters, wars, etc. I shake my head in disbelief, realizing that we are indeed living through unprecedented times. 

What to do? 

You can either let this kind of situation destroy you, or you can deal with it. There are several ways to deal with it. First of all, you must do your best to carve out a small piece of beauty, positivity, or love.  Your immediate space, your well being, is the first and foremost of importance. If you don’t take care of yourself, you can’t take care of anyone else. 

I live a very quiet life. Therefore, isolation is probably not as difficult for me as it is for others. I do my best to find pleasure in the simple things. I spend time in the back yard puttering around in my flower beds. I play with my dog. I have craft projects and household DIY projects that never seem to end. And I go back and forth from home to work and back again. 

Turn off the media! I understand wanting to keep up with friends, or current events, but a constant barrage of the news and misinformation will do nothing good for you. Take it in small doses. I listen to just a little bit of the news in the morning, until the weather forecast comes on.  Then I shut it off. In that few minutes, I have heard enough of the major headlines that I need to hear. The rest, I don’t need.  

Be prepared. Have at least a 3 day supply of emergency food and water on hand for each person in your household, for those unexpected disasters. Floods, tornados, hurricanes, etc., etc. These are just a few things that could happen to any one of us! This a wonderful website for information. 

Want to help?  Wanting to help can be an overwhelming feeling, the helplessness is massive. Do what you can. There as SO many things that simply cannot be controlled by you or me. Even the smallest of things can make an impact. Donate to a homeless shelter, sew masks for those that are without, or volunteer at a local food bank. Check with your local library, community center or schools to find out what is needed in your area. BE THERE for that friend or loved one that needs an ear to bend or a shoulder to lean on. These seem miniscule, but they MATTER.  

Talk to someone!  This is probably the most important thing you can do for your own well being. If you are down, depressed, just having a hard time coping with things these days, you’re certainly not alone. You need to be able to express these feelings. Find someone that you can confide in. A friend, relative, someone at your church, etc. If you simply don’t have anyone that you can talk to, there are a number of resources that are to be found. Below are a few:

The Suicide Prevention Hotline, available 24/7 is 1-800-273-8255

A terrific website on this can be found HERE.

There is a site specifically to help our veterans.  Find that site HERE.

Is talking to someone too much for you? It was for me in the past. There is a Crisis Text Line.  Text 741741 and you can text with a counselor.

Want to do an online chat? There’s a site for that too.  Find it HERE.

You can even TWEET with a crisis counselor at @800273TALK on Twitter.

HERE is a link to many international phone #’s for Suicide Prevention.

This is a British number to help Children in crisis.  0800111

My page on Mental Health Help can be found HERE, if you would like to read more on this subject. 

I didn’t intend to get so long-winded here, but I felt that there is so much that needs to be shared. I could go on and on! I hope that something I said here may have sparked something in you. Hopefully something that will help you deal with what ever difficulty you are having right now.  I know it’s of small consolation, but you are not alone in this. 

Take care and stay safe out there. Thank you for joining me on this journey. Penny ❤ 

Copyright (C) 2021 Penny Wilson