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And it goes the other way too. 

I’ve been skinnier the past few years, and a lot of people who know me irl have made comments like “You’re so skinny! Did you eat enough?” or “Is it even healthy to be that thin?”. I started to kinda dislike my body for a bit, but then I remebered why I’d lost weight in the first place (I started getting properly treated for my mental illneses).

 You do not have to fit what other people’s idea of “healthy” is to actually be healthy. And you don’t have to be good at mainstream athletisism to be healthy either. 

i.e. just because you can’t do a mile in 8 minutes does not mean you’re unhealthy, and visa versa. In the time before I was getting treated, I played competetive soccer and was pretty athletic in general. That didn’t change the fact that I wasn’t healthy internally. 

And, guess what? You do deserve to be happy. No matter your health. No matter what other people think of you. I am just just as worthy of happiness as I was before, and you are too.

can we stop preaching body positivity and then completely take a 180 when someone 200 to 250+ lbs comes around

like y'all think fat is 180-200 go sit down istg

#health #american healthcare is a joke #america #american healthcare #american healthcare sucks #healthy #plus size #thin or thick youre beautiful #mental health #mental health effects physical health #you deserve happiness #no matter what #all body types #all bodies #are natural #dami-cant-cope

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any reason to stay alive is a good reason

for example, my reason;

My favorite stuffed animal will be treated badly if I leave. 

(Inspired by @randomreasonstolive ) 

#trigger warning #randomreasonstolive #any reason is enough

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anyways reminder that people with ocd dont “secretly like” or want to act on their intrusive thoughts and implying so is terrible for us and you should care about people with ocd. thank you.

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It’s okay to have bad days. I sometimes all we can do is stay alive and that’s enough.

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I love watching intense gaming videos because they make me laugh, but I don’t like when creators edit in shocking, bass-heavy music with a fast bpm, because it gives me a mini-panic attack everytime. I think the reason it effects me so badly is a combination of the fact that my brain makes it’s own background music, including when I’m anxious, and the fact that my heart almost immediately adjusts to the beat of music. 

#anxiety #i am thinking of one specific game #markiplier #gaming #the forest #mental health #like please i just wanna watch u play video game #i don't wanna have panic attac

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daily dopamine 

#toad #dopamine #daily dose of serotonin #daily dose of dopamine #happy #reblog #baby toad sit on banan

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I’ll do this as well;

The Velveteen Rabbit

The Twits and The Witches by Roald Dalh 

The nine Lives of our cat Zook

Looking back on these books, it’s easy to see how they shaped me into the person I am today, and I also think that sometimes a good way to get closer to someone is to read the books they loved. 

reblog with books that you loved as a child, and still love now

#reblog

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reblog with books that you loved as a child, and still love now

#books #literature #childrensbooks #reblog this

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ok, so, completely randomly i was reading up about how school causes depression and anxiety in kids and teenagers, and I found this article (i’ll link it below), and at first I was like,

“oh, wow! Cool! It seems like they’re actually gonna explain why the school system works so horribly!”

And then, not even done with the summary, it says;

“In order to counteract adolescent depression in schools and the resulting stigma, teens and parents need to be educated about mental health. Thus, they will be better equipped to help others, offer support, and even save lives.” 

.... 

And, while this is true, it totally ignores the fact that the schools are causing these problems in the first place. 

It’s not the kid’s or parent’s fault that school is making them depressed. 

ITS THE SCHOOL’S FAULT

And it gets worse throughout the article, blaming kid’s cellphones and being “too protected” as reasons why they’re experiencing problems in school. While the article does list some reasons that could contribute to a teenager’s depression, it completely ignores the pressure put on the kids by the schools and parents. 

The article even mentions that 50% of teens feel like they’re addicted to their smartphones, without acknowledging the fact that most teens use their cellphones as ways of socialization, or even using them as coping mechanisms. Then, not even a paragraph later, the article says;

“Ultimately, the focus on screens and social media causes damage to relationships, education, and extracurricular activities. Thus, it can contribute to teen depression, as well as ADHD, oppositional defiant disorder, and anxiety.”

Again, let me remind you what this article was supposed to be about; 

“adolescent depression in schools”

keywords; in schools

The article basically then goes on to blame it all on cellphones, peer pressure, and bullying. 

(this is turning into a rant, sorry)

They mention a project where a group of adults, posing as teens, went undercover in a highschool to learn what it’s like to be a teenager. And while I think this is a start to understanding teens, they only collected information about the social pressures of the highschool community. They also mentioned how the adults took classes with the teens, which doesn’t make sense. Of course, while it is important to observe the classroom atmosphere, they adults have already learned a lot of the stuff the classes are teaching. They also didn’t take into account the fact that kids had lives outside of school or things they didn’t feel comfortable sharing that could attribute to mental illness. I’ve actually noticed this a lot, when adults try to figure out why teens are doing so badly with their mental health, they immediately look at their social lives. I might be slightly biased, but I’m under the assumption that most of the problems are caused by the school and education system itself, not the kids social life (or lack thereof).

Schools in America nowadays are more focused on profit and reputation then kids’ mental and even physical health. If you don’t think this is true, look up the statistics for what schools tend to spend their money on, how many fundraisers schools have, and what kids are eating in their school lunches. 

Along with that, students face intense amounts of pressure from parents to get good grades and do well academically. While it is important that they’re learning, parent’s tactics tend to be abusive and uncaring, such as taking away devices and threatening teens with things like taking away their food and shelter, which, if you can imagine, isn’t going to help the kid do better in school. Tactics like these just cause even more stress, making school harder. Not to mention, most times that help is offered to the kids, it’s not necessarily benefited from. Like, for example, when parents try to help their kids with schoolwork, they tend to get frustrated if the kid doesn’t understand. A lot of children and teens are empathetic enough to realize that the adult is getting frustrated, which can make them feel guilty. Even worse, some parents will get so angry that they yell at their kids, accusing them of not paying attention in class, or not caring about their education, when in reality the information is delivered in a way that is too hard to process or just straight up not understandable. Teens might also be offered to study with a tutor, which, though it can genuinely help with improving grades, doesn’t solve the problems that were most likely there in the first place, like the extreme stress and anxiety. Furthermore, teenagers are basically taught that they only need to memorize information long enough to take a test, and not to retain it. Adding onto this, is the stress of knowing that they will soon have to basically decide their future, by choosing what to study and what college to go to. Not to mention all of the political bullshit happening, that they know greatly impacts their future (sorry for cursing, but I feel like it was justified here). Moving on,....

Another thing this article says is, 

“Today’s teens are more protected than in the past. Parents try to shield them from experiencing failure and disappointment. Therefore, teens often have fewer chances to build resilience. Thus, they don’t learn how to cope with challenges.”

I think basically any teenager in the american public school system would agree with me when I say ;

The schools are challenging teens too much.

Because, and any young people know this is true, the amount of information expected to be learned is much more now then it ever has been. And, yes, it’s because there’s always new things being discovered, but the schools are trying to teach all of it, and at the same pace as they taught 40 years ago. Along with this, some teens don’t feel comfortable talking about their issues with their parents, the few people they’re supposed to trust, due to past experiences. And even then, sometimes when they do work up the courage and tell their parents about how stressful their life is, the parents will dismiss their problems as complaints to get out of things they don’t want to do, or, even worse, use the whole “well, when I was your age....” shtick, which solves absolutely nothing.

Another thing the article forgets to mention is the fact that schools decrease a child’s creative development, by forcing them to push it aside for things more academic. Development of creative intelligence is just as important as academic intelligence- I’m not quiet sure how to explain this concept, but if you look up Eddy Zong’s TED talk, it is explained very well.

I’m not sure what else to say, besides that basically everything this article says comes from the viewpoint of adults who haven’t looked at the full picture, and end up blaming the issues onto the incorrect things.

Article in question 

(sorry this was so long, if you have any questions feel free to ask [also sorry this was kinda a bummer]. Bye now, and remember to do something that makes you happy today ^u^ )

#deppresion #teen #highschool #high school #teenager #teen depression #school #anxiety #crippling anxiety #crippling depression #american education #american school system #teenagers mental health #mental health #mental health in america #mental illness #Mental Disability #mental health awareness #mental ill health #whatswrongwithschools #flaws in the education system #abusive parenting tactics #adhd #middle school #younglife #basically a book srry #depression in children #depression in students #depression in school #anxiety in school

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that is some great friend material right there

(also, same)

Being my friend

Cons:

- short temper

- implusive speech

- will only talk about the stuff I like

Pros:

- I know some pretty neat facts

- everything will remind me of you

Basically I'm a dad

#reblog #shitpost?

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Me: Brain, I don’t like my scars, they remind me of bad things

Brain: oh! So we’re gonna try a new look?

Me: wha- no that’s not wh-

Brain: make pretty make happy :)

i know I’m supposed to be an example of a positive and supportive person™ or something, but honestly, I’m really not. 

Anyways, a while ago i was thinking “wow my scars r ugly” so i legit just cut into the shape of a flower. 

Like, no, not the correct thing but at least now I’m aesthetically depressed?

#talk to myself #brain #deppresion #self harrrm #self harm #funny? #my brain is like a confused dog #like it's trying it's best #but it's still doing everything wrong

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i know I’m supposed to be an example of a positive and supportive person™ or something, but honestly, I’m really not. 

Anyways, a while ago i was thinking “wow my scars r ugly” so i legit just cut into the shape of a flower. 

Like, no, not the correct thing but at least now I’m aesthetically depressed?

#my brain is mush #self harrrm #cutting #deppresion #aesthetically depressed #i think i've found a new aesthetic? #brain go brrrr #thought process #is weird #like tf #why #why u do dis #brain could u just not #like that would actually be p cool my dude #depression gets funnier the longer youve had it #but also worse

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It really sucks how schools recently haven’t been as supportive of the arts.

it’s like they’ve forgotten that all of civilization was built upon an art of some kind.

Through architectural plans or inspiring music, it all started with art.

Adding onto that, even if you feel your art isn’t making progress, don’t give up! There’s much more to discover and do, and if it makes you happy then anything is worth continuing. You can never be too happy, and there’s such a void of joy in the world, especially right now. You’re truly doing something amazing.

#art #Aspiring Artist #artist #music #education #architecture #arts #Thank You #youre so cool #art is beautiful #life needs more joy #happy #happiness #enjoy life #art makes me happy #have fun #inspiration #inspo #inspirational

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A while ago, when I was just getting used to my medication, I started hiding it or just not taking it. I think at that time I had thought that I was “cheating” at being “normal”. (probably based on the fact that I’d managed to appear “normal” for my entire life.) 

At some point, I told my therapist. The way they explained it to me, it really brought to light what mental illness is really like.

They told me;

“It’s ok to have to rely on meds to make you feel better. If you had diabetes, wouldn’t you use insulin?”

And I still think to this day that’s the perfect way to describe it.

It’s not your fault, your body literally just does not know how to produce the right amount of something. You’re not “cheating” you're balancing out the imbalances that your body naturally has. If you had a vitamin deficiency, you’d take supplements. So, it’s the same for any other deficiency, right?

#pills #take your pills #pill #medication #it's ok to rely on meds #it's ok to need help #there's nothing wrong with you #you're not cheating #therapy #mental illness #advice #it's normal #take your meds #take care of yourselves #Mental Disability #mental disorder #mental health #therapy stuff

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I just want to say “thank you” to all the people who’ve seen my posts, or followed me, and the people who will in the future. 

You’re amazing! I mean, look at you! You’ve alive right now! Do you know how happy I am to exist at the same time as you? You’ve done so many cool things in your life so far, and I’m sure you’ll do more in the future!

#you're awesome #thank u #thank you #youre so cool #you're amazing #i love you all

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don’t be afraid to go get a tissue, or go to the restroom.

nobody thinks it’s weird, and even if they do, you shouldn’t be ashamed. They’re normal bodily functions, you would have to deal with them no matter what. 

You may feel nervous while doing it, but honestly you’ll look super cool and brave to all the other anxious people out there that still feel like they can’t do that.

#anxitey #anxious #nervous #crippling anxiety #You Can Do It #you're not alone #you're the best #how can people just DO that #like it doesnt make sense #how do u just not have anxiety #social anxious #social anxiety #mental illness

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My mother just walked into my room and said, “I like to hear you being happy again”

of course, I was confused and I asked her to explain, and she said;

“I heard you laughing and singing”

I responded with,

“I’m singing a song about child abuse”

aside from that, it really opened my eyes. It also warms my heart to know that she’s finally noticing something about me. This is the first time she’s ever done that. Maybe something is going right :)

#getting better #i like to hear you happy #again #something has changed #for the better #feeling happier now #parents #deppresion #mental illness #slump