Mental Health & a Daily Dose of Sunshine

Something you may not know about me is that I love K-dramas (Korean dramas). They are so good. I usually can’t sit through any US show for more than 5 minutes, but K-dramas are full of twists, turns, surprises, and emotional roller coasters. I recently watched one called Daily Dose of Sunshine which is currently on Netflix. It’s about a nurse who transfers to the psychiatry department. We are brought into a world of those dealing with mental health issues from panic attacks to self-harm, depression to schizophrenia. It’s not just about those in the psych ward, but others who are out in the world trying to live their daily lives while caring for their mental health. This drama addresses the denial, the prejudices, and the heartbreak that those with mental health issues, as well as their family and loved ones, experience. The nurse ends up in a psych ward herself for a while due to the suicide of one of her patients - offering viewers another perspective. This drama was beautifully done. It’s well-scripted, well-acted, and definitely worth a watch. 

We need more awareness and compassion for those who are struggling with mental health issues and for those around them who are trying to support them. Thankfully, these days, mental health is starting to get the attention that it deserves and is much needed. Decades ago, it was so taboo to even think about seeing a “shrink.” I probably would’ve been a lot happier and handled things way better had I found some help, but the idea of that somehow becoming a stigma against all of my hard work and achievements kept me from taking that step. I handled it all on my own, the best I could manage. It wasn’t until I ended up in a specialist’s office for ocular migraines that it was suggested that I see a psychotherapist and that doctor happened to know one of the best. This was about 2 years or so after my gifts opened up in Sedona. I thought it would be good to get a professional’s opinion on whether I was crazy or not. I figured she’d gently let me know if I was delusional as I explained my work with the Angels. It was quite the opposite. Harriotte was one of the best gifts the Universe could’ve given me. She helped me see that I wasn’t crazy and that I don’t have to go through so much alone. She helped me see where I had to reframe my thinking. She saw my Light - which in turn made me want to see it too.   

Back to the K-drama. As I watched the episodes unfold, I could resonate on so many levels with the emotions and difficulties the actors were portraying. I started to do some reflection and introspection and I had some great breakthroughs that were perspective shifting.  One realization I had was around self-worth. As someone who struggled for decades with low self-esteem, it all of a sudden seemed so obvious: there is no such thing as self-worth. There is no living being who is more or less worthy than another. We are all inherently worthy, yet we tend to base and scale our worth on others' expectations and perceptions - how many followers one has, how much money one makes, how much success one has, to name a few. I realized that it’s not even about whether we’re worthy or not, it’s about meaning. It’s not even a question (though we do tend to question it) whether our life has meaning - every life has meaning. We, as we exist, are meaning-full and our existence has meaning. There’s no scale to judge yourself by, unless you choose to lean on one. You have meaning, your life has meaning, and that is enough. The fun is in figuring out what that meaning is for you, what you can contribute and share with others. 

Another realization I had was about growing pains. We have them when we’re physically growing, but we also have them throughout our life as we face challenges and situations that either force us to grow or are opportunities for growth. No one wants to be in pain, but it is there to get our attention, it can teach us something, and it needs to be processed and released. Since I can feel other people's pain empathically, I just want to take that suffering away from them. I want to help them return to a state of feeling good or at least better. It doesn’t work that way. I’m not here to take away my clients' pain, I’m here to help them move through it more quickly and easily than if they tried to go through it on their own. This realization gave me more clarity on the work that I’m putting out into the world and it unexpectedly, and gratefully, took some of the weight off my shoulders. 

In the drama, they suggested to the lead character that she keep a compliment journal. Through this exercise, she discovered that complimenting herself was a lot more rewarding than receiving a compliment from others. We’re usually so hard on ourselves - judging, criticizing what we did or didn’t do on any given day. How often do we cheer ourselves on? I’ve started putting this into practice. It’s actually an awesome exercise. How often do you compliment yourself? Can you find at least one thing to compliment yourself on each day? It can be on the most trivial things or the ones that you feel proud of. This exercise helps us become less reliant on external compliments and gives us a stronger sense of self. 

Mental health is something we all should be paying attention to. What thoughts are you focusing on? Do they bring you peace or the opposite? Just as it’s important to feed your body healthy food, it’s equally important to feed your mind healthy thoughts. Are you immersed in the news or pulled into scrolling on your phone? What nourishment are you giving your mind that feels good and gives you a sense of joy or lightness? The last line of the drama states, “Each one of us is standing on the border between normal and abnormal.” Just as anyone can get physically ill, anyone can encounter mental health issues as well. Addressing our mental health and getting the help we may need - there is no shame in that. 

P.S. I was listening to a playlist and this song by Lily Meola came up. I think it fits this blog post. 
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Sending you the biggest heart hug, Adrienne ☀️