Child Abuse and Mental Health Survivors Information - Issue #125
What we take for granted.
This past week we had some friends in town visiting, which provides us a great opportunity to play “tourist” in our own town. In Louisiana it’s also Mardi Gras season, so that also includes hitting some of the parades, and other cultural events that lead up to Mardi Gras day, Feb. 13th this year.
We have more friends who will be in New Orleans this weekend so we’ll be out attending some more events and taking advantage of all the fun activities around us.
Thank you for reading the Child Abuse and Mental Health Survivors newsletter. Each week, I share new blog posts and other resources that aim to help survivors of childhood abuse and those who are struggling with mental health issues feel less alone as we discuss the issues surrounding our issues.
For more information about me and why this newsletter exists visit the website - Child Abuse Survivor.
This all serves as a reminder of how many of these fun events we take for granted and skip on a regular basis when we don’t have friends visiting. It becomes easy to get into our routines and miss the things all around us. Whether it be a routine of watching the news about all the negative things that exist in the world, or working all the time, we get stuck in what we see right in front of us every day.
That’s a very small world though. We’re missing a lot if we don’t pick our heads up and look around every now and then. That’s what I feel like these weeks are for me. A chance to be out in the world, around people, and having fun. My social anxiety might struggle a bit with it, but it also gets easier the more I get out and do things, so it’s worth the effort when I can manage it. I can’t always, but when I can that one thing makes the next one a little easier. And so no, and so on.
What good things are going on in your world that many of us are missing?
New from the Blogs
Trafficking Happens In All The Places We Assume It Doesn't
Kathleen's point is an important one. We aren't going to see change when so many people see trafficking, abuse, etc., as something that happens to "those other people." We need to continue telling our stories so that we remind people that trafficking isn't something that happens only with immigrants or poor people. It's the same thing with abuse, sexual assault, mental health. It happens everywhere, and if you don't know anyone who was trafficked or survived sexual abuse or assault, it's probably because you don't seem like a safe person to talk to about it.
Sharing - Study leaves little doubt: Depression is linked to high body heat
There may not be a simple solution, like the suggested sauna or hot tub, but what I think this study shows is that there is very clearly something going on physically with depression. This is not an "it's all in your head" situation, and I hope that perhaps information like this, which shows a measured physical symptom tied to depression, gets us to consider depression as something similar to other physical ailments.
As a middle-aged male, I may not have much experience with being harassed at a professional event or in the workplace. But I know what it’s like to exist in spaces that don't feel safe.
Shared from Elsewhere
It’s better for everyone involved - Students do better and schools are more stable when teachers get mental health support.
Similarly, doctors would perform better with mental health support too, right? We want our medical professionals to be as good as they can be, don’t we? - Doctors face huge stigma about mental illness. Now there's an effort to change that
Capturing Grief: A Photographer's Journey Through Loss.
This week is Sexual Abuse and Sexual Violence Awareness Week - Sexual violence and the impact of trauma.
Breaking Stigma Around Mental Illness
“When people realize mental illness is not a choice, it will lead to more compassion and in turn save more lives”.
The memories teach us things at a young age that aren’t always true, and that misinformation impacts us for a very long time. - How Memories of Childhood Trauma Affect Us Today.
The mental health impacts of poor workplace culture should not be underestimated. - Emotional abuse at work is more significant than we think, and even harder to escape.
From the Archives
Finding Balance and Diversity in our Social Media Use
The other thing that I applaud in Megan’s quote above is the idea of diversifying our social media use. I’m often asked why I have a number of different blogs and social media profiles, related to different topics, and my simple response is that if I didn’t have those, I wouldn’t have this. Yes, I have a Facebook Page, Twitter profile, an Instagram, and this website, totally dedicated to child abuse and mental health. But, if that was all I did online, there’s no way this website would be going into it’s 19th year of existence. I would have gotten completely burned out doing this.
Why Reading Just The Headline is Misleading
That headline seems to imply the exact opposite of the content of the article. The study they are reporting on, actually says the opposite of that.
So if you’re feeling especially stressed, just play this on a loop, ok?
Thanks for reading. If you find this newsletter informative and helpful to you, spread the word. That’s the best way you can say thank you for the effort I put in each week.
Enjoy your weekend!