Hello from a cafe in the Myer department store, where I’ve set myself up with the laptop to blog from somewhere different today. I mean, I’m on holidays, so why not?
After this I’m headed to the gym and then I’ll head home again for the afternoon before doing some more craft stuff. I’ve had quite a great day actually!
- Saw my doc to get a referral to a therapist
- Snagged a carpark straight away at the shopping centre at lunch time (almost unheard of, especially during school holidays)
- Bought my husband some new flame retardant oven mitts because the existing ones had nearly burned through – stoked to find out it was a 50% off deal so I got them both for $20 instead of $40
- Scored a seat at the cafe instantly at lunch time, again unheard of (and right now the line up to get a seat is growing super large, so I’m blogging quickly)
- The sandwich I bought for lunch was spectacular, and the coffee was good
I’m really enjoying today!
I have seen my GP and received a referral for a psychologist.
This was a big step for me. For years I never saw the need for a psychologist. “I’m fine” I said (I wasn’t).
Then I kept putting it off. “Yeah I’m sure it would be helpful, I’ll do it at some point” (I didn’t).
2021 is the year of mental health, and I did it.
My doc is pretty awesome and he’s familiar with my struggles. I had to laugh when he said “even if you pull back on your running please make sure you’re still walking”. Er, doc, let me tell you some of the events I’ve got going on…because yeah….I’m not going to be letting up on the mileage any time soon. It’s just going to be a lot slower 🙂
My doc has given me the name of someone that while they don’t specialise in Binge Eating Disorder, they are quite adaptable and try to find solutions to fit the person (rather than having “one size fits all” method of treatment). That’s good! I’ve told him I’m going into this completely open minded, with no expectations. I may immediately click with them, I may not. It doesn’t mean I shouldn’t give it a go, or stop trying.
He said there’s typically a waiting list, so I shouldn’t be too surprised if they suggest March as the first available appointment. That’s fine by me – I’m not desperately needing help before I have a break down, and there’s plenty for me to do in the meantime.
I’ve made a lot of progress
When I was chatting with a friend this morning I realised just how much progress I’ve made on my mental health in recent months.
- I’ve worked to identify my triggers that can cause a binge episode
- I’ve had numerous discussions with my husband about our relationship together and where we can improve it (with action points from both sides, it’s not all just him)
- I have been able to start drawing a line where my body and my needs come first
- I’m more self aware of when I’m being unreasonable
- I’m engaging with my son more and focusing on quality time together, making memories, no matter how mundane or how exciting the activity is
- I’ve started working on my mindset with food and removing the “diet” mentality
2020 might have had a small silver lining after all?
And because I need a picture for this post, here’s a little edit I made to my gratitude journal this morning. I used some purple iron-on and added the quote “Choose Happiness” to the front. I’ve left space to the bottom to add something like “2021 Gratitude Journal”, but I’m not sure how that will look.
It’s a nice message to start the day – no?
