Me(ntal health) - Wonder Woman

A new series of interviews, looking at the different faces behind mental health: all the ‘me’s. ‘I wouldn't say that I am someone who really struggles with their mental health, but like anyone, there have been hard times. I used to try to be Wonder Woman. I had four children under the age of eight, with only two in school; I lived on the other side of the world from my family; my husband would work abroad for weeks, sometimes months, at a time; I worked; and I had disorganised childcare. People would tell me ‘I don’t know how you do it all!’, and I got a lot of validation from that. But it turns out I couldn’t, and it was a phone call from my mother to tell me she was dying that forced me to realised how burnt out I was. The spinning plates crashed around me and I just cried for about 13 hours. First the tears were for her, but then they were for me. It was only when I broke down that I realised I’d been running myself ragged trying to be the perfect mother and the working woman all on my own. I had been heading for a breakdown, that much was clear. That experience taught me that you don’t have to do it all, you just need to be better to yourself so you can keep going. Self-care is something I struggle with even now, but I’ve had to accept that I need to be more vocal about what I need from others - I can’t afford to be shy about what I deserve.’ http://feelyourfeels.com/2018/08/01/mental-health-i-was-trying-to-be-wonder-woman/ #MentalHealthAwareness #FeelYourFeels #TheMeBehindMentalHealth