Tag Archives: Christmas

More About My Therapy Session Today

Posted on by Gertie

Good Evening, World!!! As I mentioned in my last post, I said I would try to post more about my therapy session I had today (Tuesday). So, here it goes. We discussed a great deal during our session and how I will cope with the Christmas holiday.

First we discussed what type of self care I would do for myself when I am celebrating with my dad’s side of the family. We came of with various coping skills and self care strategies I can do when I am celebrating Christmas with my dad’s side and for me it was easy to come up with coping skills for my dad’s side.

Now on to my mom’s side, it was a little more difficult because I normally stay in a hotel when I go see my mom however this year I am unable to afford one this year. So that means I will be staying with my mom who is unfortunately in active addiction to heroin.  So, of course part of my good self care plan is to bring along some Naloxone (aka Narcan) as a precaution so if my mom does overdose on Heroin I can administrate it to her as I call 911. Some other coping skills and self care options I will be doing at my mom’s is of course taking my laptop, art supplies and reading material. I am not sure if I will have access to WiFi when I am at my moms but there might be chance I could find an open network or ask one of her neighbors if I can use theirs. My mom also has a bathtub so I will be taking a nice long bath as I don’t have a bathtub and only have a shower. If worse comes to worse I stay at my uncles place who lives next door to my mom. My therapist discussed taking some self soothing items with me and is going to help me through this week with check ins to see how I am doing with my coping plan especially when it comes to dealing with my mom.

I don’t have much more to say about my appointment with my therapist but if I do remember more stuff I will post it if need be. I really want to thank you for reading my blog. It is greatly appreciated from my perspective. I hope you all have great rest of your Tuesday. Peace Out, World!!!

A Brief Description of My Mental Health Appointments Today

Posted on by Gertie

Good Evening, World!!! It has been a long and productive day. I saw my psychiatric nurse practitioner this morning and she has noticed the progress that I have been making in recent months and that she “has noticed all the progress.” We discussed how things have been going for me regarding my many diagnosis and she agrees with me that things appear to be going well with me that no med change is necessary and that once spring gets closer that we will discuss a decrease in meds. We also discussed how my sleep was at the moment and told her that I am getting more sleep but it is all broken up.  We also discussed that my voice are pretty much gone for the moment and that they still say stuff from time to time but it is only whispers and not all that often.

I also say my therapist today. We discussed a great deal about the progress that I have made and the type of coping skills I can continue to use to help me with the continued progress. We also discussed coping skills and a self care plan regarding the Christmas holiday quickly approaching as well as the grief I am dealing with as this is the first holiday without my grandma. I also discussed with him how my voices are mostly nonexistent at the moment. I told him that when I do hear the voices it is only whispers in times of stress.  I have so much more to say about my session with my therapist and would love to say more  but right now, I am really hungry and hope to post again later on this evening if not sometime tonight or tomorrow about it. I do know that he will check in on me on via phone on Friday the 21st, Monday the 24th and Wednesday the 26th before I see him for an appointment on Friday the 28th. I really like my therapist and he is checking in with me to be proactive and preventative. He wants to make sure I continue to make progress.

I really need to get going so I can get something to eat. I hope to post more about my session later on this evening. I want to thank you for reading my blog. It is greatly appreciated. I hope everyone has great rest of your evening. Peace Out, World!!!

It’s Starting To Feel A Lot Like Christmas In The Northwest

Posted on by Gertie

Good Evening, World!!!! I am officially finished with all my Christmas shopping which makes me thrilled. I am also half way done wrapping the gifts that I am giving to friends and family for Christmas which is a huge accomplishment for me as last year and the year before, I didn’t even start shopping for my gifts for people till December 23rd. So I am very proud of myself that all my gifts are bought and half of them are already wrapped.

It is starting to feel a lot like Christmas in the Northwest. Anyone who has ever spent the holidays in the Pacific Northwest knows all too well on how special it is here. That is why I love Christmas in Seattle. Granted I do miss Christmas in Southern California from time to time but there is nothing like Christmas in the Northwest.

Despite my grandma no longer here with us this holiday season, I am feeling blessed at the moment. I was able to keep a promise that I made her. The promise was to be the one to create the stockings for everyone and I accomplished that today. I also accomplished making a stocking for one of my friends who has no family as well as a friend of my grandma’s. My grandma and her friend had been friends since they were ten years old. So I mailed the stocking to her today as well as the painting I made her.

I don’t have much else to say except that today was overall a great day. In fact it was better than a great day. It was almost an awesome day. I want to thank you for reading my blog as it is greatly appreciated from my end of things. I hope everyone has a great rest of their evening. Peace Out, World!!!

It Is Yet Another Monday

Posted on by Gertie

Good Morning, World!!! It is another Monday which is the start of another work week. The last full work week before Christmas. This is the time of year where many people are under stress due to the holidays. It is also the time of year where many others who have mental health challenges it because that much more stressful and anxiety provoking especially when family is involved. It is my hope for the next eight days that everyone can be able to do some good self care as the Christmas holiday is coming quickly upon us.

The one thing I was hoping to do today was attend art group but unfortunately I have a dental appointment today and it was the only one available before the New Year so I took it. It is for the the dentist to take moldings of my teeth and after that I make an appointment to get my teeth pulled as they all need to be taken out. I however will wait till the new year to get my teeth pulled. I am not looking forward to it but if it will help me eat better to get better nutrition and feel better about myself then I will do it. I just really wanted to go to art group today as art group won’t happen on the 24th or  31st due to the fact that the group facilitators will be out of town.

After my dental appointment this afternoon, I am going shopping for Christmas gifts. I highly dislike shopping especially this time of year because everyone is so rude or at least the other shoppers appear to be rude. Another reason why I highly dislike shopping for gifts is because it always appears that the gifts I give are always returned or re-gifted. Which is why I tend to give cash or gift cards then that way the person receiving the gift can get what they want or need. Plus, then my family can’t argue that I spent more on one person than the other cause they can check the cash or the gift card to see how much it is.

But before I go to the dentist or shopping, I will be going to go get my meds. Meds that I really don’t like taking but do. I take them because I know they ultimately help me with my recovery. They are the primary reason for my recovery but are part of what helps with my recovery. Taking meds sucks but if they are helpful to my recovery then I will take them.

Before I get my meds I need to do some very basic self care stuff. I need to eat breakfast. I also need to take a shower as I haven’t taken a shower in about four days which means my depression symptoms are starting to increase. So doing basic self care items like eating, showering and evening making my bed are quite helpful for me in battling the symptoms of my mental health challenges.

Thank you for reading my blog. It is greatly appreciated. I hope everyone has a great Monday and most importantly a great work week. Again, thank you for reading my blog. Peace Out, World!!!

Sunday Evening Randomness

Posted on by Gertie

Good Evening, World!!! It is Sunday evening and I don’t think I will have much to say in this post like I did in my last post. So, lets start with the work thing, I talked a great deal about in my last post. I ended up turning off my phone and took a nap. I really needed the nap as I didn’t get much sleep last night. Well, anyway, when I woke up from my nap I turned on my phone and sent the person who asked me to work for her a text as well as our boss. My boss texted me back saying it was no big deal and he understood that sometimes people activities required the phone to be turned off. But I didn’t receive a text back from the person asking for coverage which okay with me.

Well, tomorrow I am going to the person who does dentures to get a molding of my what little teeth I have left and they will refer me to a dentist that will pull my teeth out as the oral surgeon that was suppose to do it kept cancelling on me for various reason so the person who is going to do my dentures will refer me to someone who will pull my teeth. I am not looking forward to it but at least all I am getting tomorrow is the impressions of what little teeth I have left in my mouth.

I am still dealing with anxiety, depression and PTSD symptoms. Unfortunately, it appears the symptoms are starting to increase which isn’t a surprise to me but it is worrisome as I have been doing really well and improving greatly. I also know that the grief is setting in a little bit more as Christmas is in about nine days and it is the first holiday without my grandma. So with the increased in symptoms and the grief, I am striving to just maintain the next two to three months because of the holidays this month, my grandma’s birthday is next month in January and well my grandma passed away on Valentines Day which is February. So as much as I want to continue to improve and hope I do; all I can expect from myself is to be able to maintain how I am doing currently.

I do not have much else to say. I hope everyone enjoys the rest of their Sunday or what is left of it. Thank you so much for reading my blog. It is greatly appreciated. I hope everyone’s work week goes well. Peace Out, World!!!

Sunday Randomness & Work Bullsh*t

Posted on by Gertie

Good Afternoon, World!!! It is a nice a lazy day with a bit of anxiety that I can deal with at the moment. I, of course of my typical anxiety that I deal with on the daily basis however I received a text from someone at work to see if I could work for her tonight. I always get right back to here saying whether or not I am able to work for her but I am not going to respond to her text for a two or three hours as it is her shifts I ended up covering. In fact all but one of the shifts I have covered were for her so I figure she can wait a few hours for me to respond. I am planing on informing her that I can not work for her tonight. I know I should tell her sooner than later but when I tell her my excuse, I want it to be more believable. I am not going to be lying to her as when I received her text I was busy at the time and have thing planned to do today but it is the type of plans that I can rearrange to go to work but my colleague doesn’t need to know that. I won’t be lying to her when I tell her, “sorry, I just saw your full text. I have been busy all day and am unable to work tonight.”  So, I’m not lying as I haven’t read her full text till I reply to her text. I am just frustrated that she is the one I have filled for every time except once. If I get into trouble for not responding to her text soon enough or covering shift then I will accept the consequences. Technically, on calls are suppose to cover at least one shift a month and I have had a handful of opportunities to do so this month but haven’t wanted to various reasons. Considering the other on call person hasn’t done a shift in months I don’t think I have anything to worry about in regards to getting fired but if I do get let go for that reason I will be disappointed but grateful at the same time. Don’t get me wrong I like my job for the most part. I just don’t like being on call and the irregular hours as it messes with my sleep. If I had a regular shift even if it is a night shift I would have a better sleep pattern.

So, since being on call for a night shift isn’t the right fit for me, I have been looking for other jobs. Even jobs I have had before and really didn’t like. I have considered going back to working at grocery store because at least they would be able to respect my accommodations I need for my disability. I am applying to various places and will only apply at a grocery store as last resort. I really want to become Peer Specialist again. I have been applying for various positions in the mental health field including administrative assistant and janitorial jobs at mental health agencies as once you have a foot in the door, you’re more likely to get hired within the agency.

It is the holiday season and Christmas is nine days away. I can’t help but think how difficult this Christmas is going to be for my family as it is the first holiday season without my grandma. Grief is hard no matter what but it seems more difficult the first year without the person who is gone. I hope all goes well over Christmas and that my family is able to handle it.

I just received another text from the colleague wanting me to cover her shift for her. So I turned off my phone. That way I can say that my phone was off and I didn’t receive her text or if she calls then it will go straight to voicemail. I know I should respond but I don’t want to come up with some lie. I just want to tell her that when she texted me I was unavailable and now that I read them I am unable to work.  Granted I have only read part of the text but not the full text as if I open the text then she will know it was delivered. I just don’t want to work tonight. I know I should just say I am unable to work but she is the type of person that will pressure you into working.

Now back to the grieving process of missing my grandma. I think that is part of the reason why I don’t want to work tonight. Plus, my depression and anxiety is acting up at the moment. Some of my anxiety is work related at the moment but the other part of my anxiety is PTSD related which sucks. It being winter and Christmas time my mental health symptoms tend to get worse due to past traumas, weather and shorter days. I really dislike grief, depression, anxiety and PTSD.

I think I will try to get some sleep since I didn’t sleep well last night. A nap will do me some good and then maybe I can come up with an excuse that is not a lie to my work colleague. I am turning off my phone as a precaution, just in case she or our supervisor attempts to call so it will go straight to voicemail. I informed my grandpa about it and his said “just lie saying you were taking care of me” but I don’t want to lie. I just want to say something like “I just got your text and was unavailable to respond and am unable to work tonight since I just saw the text. I am sorry for the short notice. I hope you understand” and hopefully she buys it. I did read some but not all of the message as I didn’t open the full text message so I am not exactly lying but it feel like a lie in a way even though I have been busy doing other things. An idea I have is to say I am unable to work tonight due to my disability acting up which is true or I have migraine which is also true. So when I do respond later I will most likely tell her that I’ve either been busy or been dealing with a migraine and won’t use the disability until I absolutely need to and using my disability in this case in not an absolute need to.

I think I really need to focus on making sure the symptoms of my depression, anxiety and PTSD don’t increase because I want today to continue to be another lazy Sunday. I love dealing with lazy Sundays and that is what I am gong to do despite the anxiety of not responding to colleague about working for her tonight. I will let it be a lazy Sunday and respond to her later. So here is to an enjoyable lazy Sunday despite others needs, increased mental health symptoms, grief and the expectations that Christmas brings.

Now, I am going to end this post so I can go take a nap. Thank for reading my blog. I hope you continue to read my blog and I will NOT lie to my colleague as I have been busy and have been dealing with a migraine. Not sure which truth I am going to tell her but I will text her later on. Again thank you for reading. Have a wonderful Sunday. Peace Out, World!!!

Nothing Like A Nightmare Early On A Monday Morning

Posted on by Gertie

Good Morning, World!!! Well, it is Monday morning and people are starting to get up to get ready for their work day. I have been awake since two thirty this morning due to a nightmare and it is now five o’clock in the morning in my corner of the world. Waking up to a nightmare is absolutely no fun. At least my cat did her job and woke me up from the nightmare before it got any worse. Some how she trained herself to wake me up from a nightmare by either licking my nose or licking one of my big toes. Not sure how she trained herself to do that but I am grateful for it.

Since I woke up from a nightmare, I have been reading comic books and listening to music. Specifically, I have been reading Wonder Woman comic books and listening to Christmas music. For some reason reading Wonder Woman comic books and listening to Christmas music has been quite helpful for me the last two and half hours which I am extremely grateful for.

Now that it is five o’clock in the morning, I will be watching the morning news as I haven’t kept up to date on the news via television all weekend. I did however read the newspaper over the weekend. Sometimes staying away from the news is quite helpful for my mental health and this past weekend it was quite helpful as my depression symptoms have been increasing which sucks shit.

I don’t have much more to talk about at the moment. I want to thank you for reading my blog. It is greatly appreciated from my end of things. I hope everyone has a great start to the work week. I also hope everyone has a great Monday. Peace Out, World!!!

 

Still Fighting Off Fucking Depression

Posted on by Gertie

Good Afternoon, again, World!!! I am still fighting off fucking depression however it is slowing going away with the things I have done so far. I hung out with a friend. We went to Red Robin and had a late lunch, early dinner. We then walked around the mall and ended up getting pictures with Santa Claus. Getting a picture together with Santa was fun.

Even though the holidays bring more depression my way, I am glad I am coming up with new ways to fight off the depression and to start new traditions. My friend and I are going to do the Santa picture every year from now on.

I am now at my volunteer job waiting for five o’clock to come around as that is when my shift start. I only have about fifteen more minutes till my shift starts which is okay with me. I love my volunteer job. I have been at this volunteer job for four years now. It has helped me a great deal with my life and mental health.

Granted my depression is still acting up at the moment but I am glad I have decided to not isolate. Isolation is a persons worst enemy when they have depression. Fighting isolation and depression sucks shit but I am currently doing it at the moment.

I am just realizing this is my third post today. I have not posted multiple times in a day in a very long time. I am grateful that I am utilizing this great coping skill for me. I hope that me blogging helps you my reader.

I do not have much else to say. I hope everyone has an awesome Saturday afternoon and evening. Thank you so very much for reading my blog. It is greatly appreciated from my end of this. Have a great evening. Peace Out, World!!!

Friday Night At Home In My PJ’s

Posted on by Gertie

Happy Friday Evening, World!!! I have been home for a few hours and have decided to spend my Friday evening in my pajama’s spending time with my cat, Lil Gertie. I spent the night at my grandpa’s last night. I got to my grandpa’s yesterday afternoon and didn’t get back home till this afternoon and it feels great to be home. In fact, it is nice to spend time by myself with my cat. My cat has pretty much been sitting on my lap most of the evening which is very relaxing for me.

I have pretty much done absolutely nothing productive. I have taken a shower and clean the kitty litter box but that is as productive as I am getting this evening. I have been listening to Christmas music as I read comic books. I am reading A Superhero’s Christmas volumes one and two. It is a holiday ritual that I do every year even when I am severely depressed as it is one thing I know I can do as a personal tradition. A tradition I have been doing for about eight years now. I read these two comic books multiple times during the holiday season.  The superhero’s are all DC superhero’s in the comic books.

I thing my Friday evening has been quite relaxing. I have a cat on my lap while listening to Christmas music and reading a Superhero’s Christmas volumes one and two from DC comics. How much more relaxing can a night be? I think I might even watch a Christmas movie but not sure yet.

I don’t have much else to say in this post. I hope you all have a relaxing Friday as well as relaxing weekend. Thank you so much for reading my blog. It is very much appreciated from my end. Peace Out, World!!!

Photo 1; Day 6: Solitude

Posted on by Gertie

Good Afternoon, World!!! Today’s topic is of solitude and I thought of the perfect picture from Christmas of 2017 in Olympia, Washington.

IMG_0115The above picture is from my hotel room I stayed at while visiting family for the holidays. As you can see I had a white Christmas. I stayed in Olympia, Washington as mentioned which is the state capital. You can see tiny bit of it three quarters of the way up on the left. So the solitude part of this picture was when I walked around the lake while listening to the sounds around me. I went back to the hotel room and had hot chocolate while looking out the window to the scene that is pictured above.

Thank you for reading. Have a great day. Peace Out, World!!!