Let's talk about Mental Health!!!

You are not alone!

Let’s talk about mental health.  This has been a touchy subject amongst most, but more importantly throughout the African American Community.  From a young age most of us are taught to be strong and not come off weak no matter what.  We cover our real authentic selves to not be the laughingstocks in most instances.  After something life changing that happened recently this is a subject that needs to be discussed.  And I will continue to talk about this until I am blue in the face. 

I am a huge advocate of therapy and speaking to someone.  I am an individual that if I am having an issue I will talk with my “person” (people).  I am blessed to have 3 people in my close circle that I can go to with just about anything, and they can confide in me as well.  I am grateful to have these ladies in my life they are more than friends they are family.  

I have always been known to have it all together, and while I can handle stress very well, sometimes the load does get heavy, and I want to talk to someone who doesn’t know me or the situation at hand.  In the past I would typically just hold it in.  Ive never been the one to journal seriously out of fear of someone finding it and seeing me vulnerable, and as a child I had gone to counseling after the passing of my Grandmother due to the fact that I showed no emotion what so ever after she passed (I had bottled up the emotion).  As a 10 year old child in a therapist office lets just say it didn’t work nor did I take it serious I just wanted to hurry up and get to cheerleading practice or ballet.  

I thought long and hard, and I was tired of bottling certain things in. I was in a very good place in my life, working for my dream company, a few months shy of Graduating from my Masters program with honors,  and manifesting sitting pretty, everything was going well. However, I still had a lot of things on my mind that I wanted to run past a fresh set of ears. So in January of this year I decided to start going to therapy full-time.  By full-time I mean every week.  I searched high and low for a therapist that I thought would be a great fit for me.  It was time to unload all the years of stuff I had bottled up (Pressures with working in a male dominating industry, not coping with the passing of my step-sister, the fear of settling, etc).  After my first session I was confident that she was going to fire me as a client (lol).  But over this past year idk where I would be without my therapist.  

I wish mental health was widely talked about.  I am proud of the direction the mental health conversation is headed, however it has a long way to go before its at a place where everyone would be comfortable having the conversation.  I am sharing because the time is now to create that awareness, going to therapy is nothing to be ashamed of! 

As a plea to whomever is reading this if you feel like you have no one to speak to, or someone doesn’t get all of the stress that you are under I promise you, that you are not alone.  If you are on the fence about going to therapy go!  It’s healthy, even when everything is going good in and around your life its good to have that person to speak with.  I want you to know that you are valued, you matter and you are not alone.  

You can also reach out to me if you want to chat, or unload.  I will be that listening ear to whomever needs it.  

Email: sittingprettymovement@gmail.com or info@sittingprettymovement.com 

XoXo,