Lived Experience Forum

[Zoe7]

I so get the space thing @Queenie I have my easel set up in the loungeroom as that is the only space I have until all my school stuff is out of the spare room and into a new school. I truly hope you can find that passion and space again soon (but I understand the space thing is an issue in your current living situation). Maybe start with something small that you can set up in a corner somewhere. You could do a series of small painitngs that combined make a bigger image. Something to thing about anyway. 

I know the passion artists have and being in the right environment and in the right headspace are important to - so hoping youo can find both of those this year. Keep me updated in how you are going with this - very interested to see how it progresses for you this year 

[CheerBear]

Loved reading all of these! It is inspiring and exciting 😊

I was thinking about the question you asked yesterday Lauz, about whether these things feel more doable now after being able to do them last year. It's a great question as it made me stop and really think about my "cans" instead of my "can'ts". So often that "can't" voice is loud and threatens to drown out the "can" one. It feels good to challenge it!

Definitely as far as relationships and friendships go, I didn't think I'd be able to overcome the sadness and fear I carry enough to enjoy forming new relationships. Through giving it a go and finding the good in it, I have shown myself that maybe I'm not really as antisocial as I tell myself I am (defense mechanism there maybe 😉) and that I really can enjoy a new village instead of being completely trapped in the pain of losing the one I used to be part of.

Even with crochet, often I've looked at something difficult and my initial reaction was that I wouldn't be able to do it as it would be too hard. The more I practice and learn from my mistakes the more I can do, and the more of it I do the more I want to do. Two big mandala blankets I made, one which I finished about this time last year, come to mind here as they were great examples of this.

That idea might seem obvious but I think it can be forgotten easily when things are difficult. It was nice to be prompted to stop and think about the things I've done well and that I want to continue doing, rather than focusing solely on what I'd like to improve on and where I'd like to be.

Thanks for the food for thought 🙂

[Teej]

Oh @CheerBear. That is such a 😎 response! 

Perhaps my response will will come off the back of yours 😘. I’ve been racking my brain and struggled to think of anything. 

Last year i think my biggest gains were through watching and learning how others dealt with the really hard life knocks and stand up again and dust themselves off. It perhaps has been incredibly motivating and inspiring and has encouraged me to try to be more resilient. The cool think is that 99% of it has come from the forum. It took so long for me to see and understand some of it. I’d love to name names in a way but that wouldn’t do justice to all the posts I’ve read that have taught me something or inspired me. 

This year i would like like to continue that learning and trying some new things too. 

[Zoe7]

Every day we marvel at the ways that members here pull themselves up, keep going, reach out for support and get through some of the toughest times in their lives @Teej.

Our strength is the community we are part of and it takes every single member to put it all on the line here at times and that helps others know they are not alone in what they are thinking, feeling or doing. So many inspirational people on the forum and so much yet to learn from each other - it is a process that keeps going and as we navigate our own mental health and support others doing the same we become even stronger as individuals and as a community. We stand alone in space but are connected by the same moment in time - and in those moments we have each other to lean on, learn from and inspire ...and you are one of the inspirtional ones - you have taught me so much about getting back up when I felt I could not and you, like so many others here, have allowed me to walk the journey that I have  and at no time have I not felt the love and support from everyone. So if there is one more thing that I learnt last year that I can bring with me into the new year is that inspiration can come from the simplest of things and that community also means one belongs.

[BlueBay]

Hi @Lauz

I really need to get my blood pressure down. It’s too high. So the last two nights I’ve started to walk. I’m going to continue this as well as concentrate on my mentsl health with extra counselling support apart from my own psychologist. 

I’m going to try and sew some baby blankets snd sell them online.