Mental Health

Just have fun! Don’t Drink the Water! Don’t stress, it will happen! (Insert eye-roll) If you’ve been around a pregnant person or you’re thinking of, or trying to, get pregnant you’ve probably heard one of those phrases, if not all of them. They just annoy me.  Pregnancy is not something that came easily to me. It was a years-long process that took an emotional toll. It was full of setbacks and heartbreak and self-doubt. It was definitely not fun or easy. I understand the heartache and pain that can come with pregnancy announcements and having to hear the clichés. I work in a predominantly female profession, in fact, I have no male coworkers. There are a lot of women of...

The holidays are here. Family gatherings are around the corner. For most of us, that means navigating difficult relationships that we are only obligated to navigate twice a year. “Eliminate toxic relationships from your life” has become a buzz phrase as of late. While the notion had great initial intentions, it has become overgeneralized. There are two problematic ways people have synthesized this: 1) Eliminate anyone who thinks differently than you from your life. 2) Remove perplexing relationships from your life and label them as toxic for validation of your decision, rather than growing as a person by learning to navigate the relationship. I hear people stamp the “eliminating toxic relationships” mark on difficult family members in particular. In comes the United States Supreme...

The other day, a suggested post in one of my social media feeds introduced me to the idea of NO-vember. In a nutshell, you are free to say no to ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING this month if it drains your energy. This isn't necessarily a new concept, but I like to think of it as Marie-Kondo-ing my so-called and quite often self-inflicted obligations (instead of my home). If it doesn't spark joy, then you can say no to it with no guilt whatsoever. Honestly, it shouldn't take social media posts or witty phrasing to help us understand something we should already be doing. There should never be any guilt associated with doing what is best for you, even if that means...

*TRIGGER WARNING: Eating Disorders* I was in the 8th grade at my very, VERY small private school in my ridiculously small town, when a classmate’s mother- a nurse- performed scoliosis checks for all nine (yes, NINE) of my classmates. At some point, she stepped out into the hall and announced, in front of a few of my classmates, that she needed to recheck the “chubby girl.” She was talking about me, and everyone instinctively knew it. I didn’t learn that she’d said that until later that day, but I vividly and painfully remember the mortification I felt at the time. If I could have folded in on myself and simply disappeared, I would have. In retrospect, I can recognize that an adult...

Disclosure :: This post is sponsored by Ochsner Baton Rouge.  Why Am I Depressed During the Holidays? The holidays are supposed to be happy. But maybe for you, the holiday season brings dread, sadness, depression, feelings of isolation and unhappiness. If you feel this way, you are not alone. Millions of people experience holiday depression beginning in the autumn and continuing through the new year. A few reasons why people get depressed during the holidays include the following: Seasonal affective disorder typically occurs during the winter months (some people experience it in other seasons). This condition causes people to experience depression as the season begins; as the season ends, they slowly feel better. Since most major holidays happen during the winter, this condition...