Tag Archives: Blogging101

Day Eight: Be a Good Neighbor

Posted on by Gertie

It is day eight of blogging 101. Today’s assignment is to be a good neighbor. Basically, the assignment is asking to make comments on blogs we follow. I already try to do this and realize I haven’t commented on the blogs I follow as much I think I should. That is why when I got this assignment last night, I made an effort to comment on blogs that I follow. In fact this assignment has me committed to make an effort to comment on at least two blogs a day.

I like today’s assignment. It reminds me why I started my blog. What better way to give others hope and educate than to comment on other blogs? I am enjoying the blogging 101 course and am happy to be learning more about blogging and why it is a good idea to do some thing when it comes to blogging.

I will do more of my assignment of commenting later on today. I have to go to some appointments and do a few chores. Have a wonderful Hump Day (Wednesday) everyone. Peace Out!!!

Day Seven: Keep Personalizing

Posted on by Gertie

It’s day seven of blogging 101. The assignment ask us to personalize our blog a little more. For intense, part of the assignment suggest that we add a picture or customize our widgets. I have already customized my widgets and not sure how to add a picture yet. I have to figure that one out and will mess around with it. To tell you the truth I don’t even know if I want to add a picture of anything. Yes, I know having a picture could help grab people’s attention to read my blog however, I will go with the old saying of “Don’t judge a book by it’s cover.” Or in my case a blog. Another reason, why I have decided to not have a picture on my blog is because, I haven’t found one that has caught my eye to be suitable for my blog.

I figure that I can keep personalizing my blog as I go on and if I need help, I can call on my fellow blogging friends and/or WordPress’s support. Another way I am personalizing my blog is by using my voice (aka via my keyboard). My voice is why I started my blog. I use my voice to share with others who struggle with a mental illness that recovery is possible as well as to educate those who don’t have a mental illness in hopes to lessen the stigma of mental illness.

As time goes on, I hope to educate more as well as find a picture to better personalize my blog. Now, I have to get ready for work. Have a good Tuesday. Peace Out!!

Day Six: Make an Irresistible “About” Page

Posted on by Gertie

Today marks the start of the second week of blogging 101. Day Six’s assignment is to make an irresistible about page. I already had an About Page that I like. I did tweak it slightly. I added how people could contact me if they wish and how they could find me on Facebook and Twitter. I also made sure that I highlighted that I am not a professional because all I am is an advocate for those who have a mental illness as well as their peer to show those who struggle that recovery is possible. I am also just a “lay educator” in educating those who do not have a mental illness. I don’t think my About Page is irresistible but it that is okay with me. My about page tell you the reader about me and my blog and if it catches someone’s eye then cool.

Now that I am done with today’s assignment, I encourage you to look at my About Page. I now have to finish getting ready for work. Have a good Monday and work week. Peace Out!!!

Daily Prompt: Blogger With a Cause

Posted on by Gertie

In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “Blogger With a Cause.” If your day to day responsibilities were taken care of and you could throw yourself completely behind a cause, what would it be?

This daily prompt is an easy one for me and if you regularly read my blog the causes I am would be completely behind would be a no brainer. The causes I would be behind are causes I am currently behind. They are mental health issues, recovery and ending homelessness.

As many of you know I have a passion when it comes to mental health and recovery. Everyone has the right to get the treatment they deserve if they choose to seek out help. The first thing about recovery is that you have to choose to want to be in recovery. Sadly, not everyone decides that recovery is for them and that is their choice. Not only is recovery a choice, it looks differently to each individual.

Another one of my passions is ending homelessness. Everyone deserves to have a home if they choose to accept housing. Again accepting housing is a choice just like choosing recovery. Becoming homeless is as uniquely and circumstantial as the person. As you may know some people who become homeless is because the came on hard times and lost a job. Then their are those individuals who are homeless and have a serious mental illness. Many individual’s who are struggle with both mental illness and homelessness have difficulty keeping housing due to their mental illness. In return if you are struggling with a mental illness while homeless it’s difficult to get to your appointment because you are too busy trying to get shelter for the night.

As you can tell housing can be a major part someone’s recovery. That is why I work at mental health agency that houses those who are the most vulnerable in regards to mental illness. They help house those who have a serious mental illness in hopes that once they get help then they will seek help for their mental illness. Only about have who get housed through the agency agree to seek mental health treatment and we are fine with that. It is their choice to seek treatment. Getting housing is a major deal and if we can get them treatment then that is a major plus.

As you can tell, I am already a blogger with a cause and I don’t need to quit my day job to do so. I love my job and I love blogging. I love the causes that I am involved in. I will call it a day in regards to blogging. Have a good weekend all. Peace out!!

Day Five: Love Your Theme

Posted on by Gertie

Good Morning all!!! It is day five of blogging 101. Today’s assignment was to choose a theme you love. As you can see, I changed my theme. I changed it last night when we received our assignment for today. As much as I enjoyed my last theme (The Flounder), I feel like the new theme (Rusty Grunge) is more of a representation of who I am as a person as well as a blogger who coming into their own.

Coming into my own person has not been an easy feat for me. There has been struggle after struggle with various situations that has helped me become the person I have become. If it weren’t for learning how to deal with various struggles in my life especially when it comes having a mental health diagnoses, I wouldn’t be able to have the success I have in my life. That is where blogging comes into play.

Being able to blog about my journey as a person who is recovery with their mental illness has been an experience that I do not regret doing. It has brought me to realize that being about share my recovery story to the world has been quite therapeutic for me. Most importantly having my new theme represents how I have grown as a person over the years as well as a blogger over the last year.

Thank you everyone for reading my blog. It is greatly appreciated to have people like you all reading my journey of recovery. Happy Friday and Peace Out!!

Day Four: Identify Your Audience

Posted on by Gertie

Todays assignment is to identify my audience as well as try something new that I haven’t tried yet. I do have to say I would love to add a picture every once in awhile however I am unsure on how to do it. Yes, I’ve looked at WordPress’s “instructions” but they don’t make sense to me for a number of reasons. One of which involves a learning disability. It’s not WordPress’s fault that I have a learning disability. I just wish they would put it into simpler terms to where people who do not understand computers or who may have learning disabilities may be able to comprehend what they are explaining. I do know of people who may be able explain on how to put a picture to my blog at a later time.

Enough of my complaining and back to my assignment of targeting my audience. I think I already have a targeted audience. Well, at least some of my targeted audience. If you have been following and/or reading my blog you know that the focus of my blog is mental health recovery and what it looks like to me as I walk through my recovery. You also know that I want to have more of an educational piece to my blog. Taking blogging 101 is having me think more of the educational piece of my blog and its only the fourth day into the three week course. Now that I have somewhat of an established blogging audience, I need to continue on building that aspect of my blog as well as trying to start building the other half of my audience. That other half are those who do not have a mental illness and wanting to educate them in hopes to lessen the stigma that goes along with having one. It’s always been my goal to give hope to those who have a mental illness that recovery is possible as well as have an educational aspect to those who don’t have a mental illness to lessen the stigma. I hope what I said made sense and didn’t sound repetitive.

I am thrilled that I am taking this course because it is has me refocusing on what I want my blog to be. Granted I wish I was aware of it when I first started blogging but am happy that I am taking it at this point in time of my blogging experience. I have just of year under my belt with blogging and have some experience that is helping with the course. Something is to be said by trial and error learning and am grateful for that. I’m grateful that I am taking this course now.

With all that being said I need to get going for the moment and will blog again tomorrow. Have a wonderful day. Peace out!!!

Day Three: Say Hello to the Neighbors

Posted on by Gertie

It is day three of Blogging 101 and today’s assignment was saying hello to our neighbors. We had to choose five “topics” to follow as well as five blogs to follow. No problem, I have been meaning to add more topic to my tags as well as wanting to follow new blogs.

The new topics I have decided to follow and the reasons are as follows: Feminism: I have always been interested in feminism and consider myself as feminist. Politics: I love politics and how it has shaped our world as a whole. Child Abuse: I thought I was already following it but when I was looking in my tags, I realized I was not so now I am. LGBTQ: Despite being engaged to a wonderful man, I have always considered myself a part of the LGBTQ community because of being pansexual. Comics: I love comics. In fact I am a big collector of comic books. In fact I have most of the Wonder Woman comic books.

The following are the blogs I have started following as of today: http://HeathersHelpers.org/, http://SocialWorkSynergy.org/, http://SurvivorGrrl.com/, http://MomentOrTwo.com/ and last but not least http://TearingOffTheMask.wordpress.com/. I encourage you all to take a look at the above blogs that I just decided to follow.

Now that I am finished with todays assignment, I need to head out and take care of my mental health. I see my psychiatric nurse practioner and my therapist today.  I have a great deal to talk to my therapist about in regards to my stupid PTSD symptoms. Well, I need to go. Have an awesome day. Peace Out!!

Day Two: Take Control of Your Title and Tagline

Posted on by Gertie

Today’s assignment doesn’t necessarily have us write a blog. In fact it has us “Take Control” of our Title and Tagline. Since I have already done that, I wanted to blog about why I chose my title and the tagline.

I came up with Gertie’s Journey because I am Gertie and it is my journey. Gertie is not my given name and no it is not short for Gertrude. It is a nickname I received in the third grade. I originally used my nickname in the title because of the stigma that goes with having a mental illness however since I now have a job as a Consumer Advocate, and work with those who struggle with mental illness’s, I use it to protect myself. Not only that Gertie’s Journey sounds much better than if you would use my given name with the word journey.

As for my tagline, it pretty much explains itself. My tagline is: A Journey of Mental Health Recovery. The reason why I chose the tagline I did was because I am sharing my journey of being in recovery with a mental illness. Of course it is my hope that I will add more of an educational twist to my blog. It has always been the hope and the case to include an educational twist. It just hasn’t been as much as a priority as it should be and will be in the future. When the educational twist of my blog comes more into play then I will change my taglines just a wee bit.

Now that I have completed today’s assignment, I need to sign of and head to work. Have a wonderful day everyone. Peace Out!!!

Day One: Introduce Yourself to the World

Posted on by Gertie

As many of you are well aware of, I am Gertie and have been blogging for just over a year. If you regularly read my blog you are also aware that I am trying to improve my blogging skills and taking a blogging 101 course that WordPress offers through Blogging U. Today marks day one of the three week course I am take. Today’s topic is to introduce myself to the world. Yes, I am aware that some of this may be repetitive if you are a regular reader and ask you to bare with me.

I am Gertie and like I mentioned in the previous paragraph, I have been blogging for just of a year now. I started blogging for two reasons. The first reason I started blogging was and is to educate those who do not struggle with a mental illness in hopes to lessen the stigma that unfortunately goes with having a mental health diagnosis. The second reason why I started blogging was and is to be an example to those who struggle with a mental illness that recovery is possible and most importantly there is hope. Yes, that means I struggle with a mental illness. If you would like to get to know me better here is the link to the original post introducing myself:  https://gertiesjourney.com/2014/05/31/intorduction-to-gerties-journey/. I hope that this was helpful to you the reader especially if you are a new reader and/or follower.

Well, that is it for the moment despite it being short and sweet. Well maybe not exactly sweet but definitely shorter than most of my other post. Before I head off to work I want to wish you all a good Monday. Peace Out!!!

Improving My Skills In Blogging

Posted on by Gertie

As you can tell a number of my post have been Daily Prompts in recent days. I have quite a few reasons why I have done the daily prompts. One of which is, I was having difficulties coming up with ideas to blog about and they are extremely helpful in that way. Another reason why is I’ve been using Daily Prompts is because I noticed I wasn’t blogging as much as I use to, when I started blogging and realized that I had more people reading my blog when I was posting more often.

Another thing I plan on doing starting tomorrow is the Blogging U. 101 class that WordPress puts on for free. Yes, I am aware that the Blogging 101 courses might be a bit trivial and a repetitive blogs due to the assignments they give and for the fact that I have been blogging for just over a year now. I figured it wont hurt if I relearned stuff that I already learned by trial and error. Who knows I might even learn some new stuff. I am hoping that taking the Blogging U. 101 course will help improve my blogging skills. Granted, I realize some of the assignments they give me might have me blog about things or topics that I have already blogged about. It is my hope that you my reader don’t get annoyed with me and remain patient with me and my blogging process.

It is my hope through this process that it will improve my skills to be a better advocate for those with mental illness as well as to better educate those who do not have a mental illness. It is my biggest hope with this blog to help eliminate the stigma those is associated with having a mental illness. Discrimination against those with mental illness is why many people who struggle with one don’t seek out help. It is for them I share my story of recovery and hope that my story can eliminate the stigma that goes along with it.

Now that you are aware of what I am going to be doing, I ask for your patients and understanding. The course will last three weeks and I hope to learn a great deal with it. Peace out and have an awesome day.