How are you influenced to speak to yourself?
- Paige Harrison
- Jan 23, 2023
- 2 min read
Do you know something?
It’s completely ok to have down days.
I’m not going to be the person who says don’t cry and keep smiling. I want to tell you to allow yourself to cry, feel your feelings, rest and take it easy.
As a society we are often influenced into believing that crying is a sign of weakness, resting makes you lazy and if your not grafting your not successful. I also just want to add particularly whilst on the topic, towards males especially, that being told to ‘man up’ and receive comments such as ‘boys don’t cry’ etc. etc. can be exceptionally detrimental to a person and their mental health.
Now don’t get me wrong, the majority of the time these comments often occur from those who are unsure of what to say, and who are actually wanting to help lift a person up and make them smile. So please don’t feel bad if you recognise comments such as this can come from you; but it’s always good to have this awareness to allow change to occur moving forward.
The reason I’m bringing this up is because the last few days I’ve felt exhausted, my skin has suffered, I’ve just wanted to sleep and eat pretty much anything I can get my hands on. Sound familiar?
What I did instead of being critical and punishing myself was I…
- Listened to what I needed
- Slept and rested
- Ate the food my body was craving
- Reassured myself that it was ok to rest and to not be feeling my best
- Ensured I was looking after myself and not neglecting myself at this time
- Spoke about how I was feeling to people I trust
Today I am feeling so much brighter. I took myself outside on this beautiful day and felt very proud of myself for taking the time to listen to myself and my needs.
Stop telling yourself that self-care is selfish. You are human, not a robot and can’t be happy all the time. Listen to your body and what it’s telling you. Your emotions and feelings are coming up for a reason. They are valid, listen to them.
✍🏼Words by Paige Harrison
Find me on my socials at: @paigeharrisoncounsellor
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