Overcoming Struggles and Learning When To Say “You Deserve It” 

I originally wanted this post to be about this new beauty that has come into my life, but with #BellLetsTalk Day, I knew that the messaging had to shift. The reason being that this bag has very little to do with falling in love with Chanel and this item, and more about what this bag represents for me.

This bag represents how far I’ve come in the last few years. Not so much with my work and career, but more with my own personal struggles.

I finished 2014 being let go from my 9-5 job. While at the time, it was a blessing as I didn’t think I was where I wanted to be in my life and I wasn’t exactly happy, being let go can sometimes bring a mix of emotions. Excited for whats to come yes, but even though I was let go not due to my own work, I was left feeling more unwanted, unsuccessful and really, just lost.

2015 didn’t exactly start out rough, but as each month passed, I fell deeper and deeper into a depressed state. Not knowing where my life would lead and feeling like I would never be successful, those emotions just turned into what some may call “depression”. I ignored friends, couldn’t get myself out of bed and most days I just cried. My feelings could never be explained if someone asked me, (as some family members did), but I could never explain it. It was just pure sadness. The sadness that completely strangles you.

It wasn’t until a friend mentioned how distant I had gotten that I realized how much my personal struggles were pouring into my personal relationships and life. It was then that I decided to confide in the closest people in my life. That was my first step towards feeling more myself. I talked to the people that knew me, and I mean really knew me. When I was sad, I just called my sister. We would chat about nothing at all, but I was able to just identify with being sad. I wasn’t judged, but just listened to, and that helped more than anything. My boyfriend at the time didn’t live with me and as much as he couldn’t understand it, he just held me when I needed it and he told me things would get better (even if he didn’t actually know).

THIS is something that truly helps. At a time when you are low, having a positive group of people surrounding you is a great way to have people believe in you when you can’t believe in yourself. That is what helped me gradually pull myself out of my “funk” (this is a word I like to use in this case).

The truth is that when it comes to mental health, you can not know what the other is going through, buy you can just be there. What I tell people who confide in me is that you need to have a stable and supportive friend or group of people who you can open up to because one thing is for sure – holding it in and trying to “deal with it” will get you nowhere.

Once I had “my people” for support, I filled my sad days with things that made my heart happy. I went to the gym, or took a walk to get flowers or I would go on hour long walks with my sister. I also poured my heart into this blog and felt more and more excited to share posts with Girls of T.O readers. I literally tried everything to see what made my heart happy.

Even though we just started 2017 and it’s been a couple years, I still struggle with anxiety and forms of depression, but I know now that there is light at the end of the tunnel. I know it can consume you and it can feel like you just don’t want to hurt anymore, but I can promise that it will get better.

I promise.

So this bag is not a pretty new thing to wear on the blog and prance around in. This bag represents my struggle, my sadness, my wanting to give up but instead pushing through, learning to be happy again no matter what that means. It is also a reminder that sometimes I need to give myself a pat on the back and say “You Deserve This!”

Whether you are currently dealing with anxiety or depression or know someone who is, join the discussion today on social with #BellLetsTalk and get talking. Talking is the first step towards all of us understanding and supporting mental health and I urge you to get talking.

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