Open In Case of Emergency- My Mental Health Toolkit

As someone who has been challenged for decades by bipolar depression, I have developed through trial and error my mental health tool kit. These are strategies that I employ when I feel my mental health out of balance. As a disclaimer, these tools are not meant to help me achieve complete balance (trust me I don’t have that even on my perfect days!) but they help to slow the decline of my emotions, thereby avoiding or lessening the effects of my bipolar depressive symptoms.

My Emergency Toolkit (In no particular order)

1. I freeze. Whatever I’m doing or feeling I just stop and pause, literally. I will go so far take any and everything out of my hands, stop walking and just stand still.

2. Meditation. I never liked meditation or being more aware of my breath, until I learned that I don’t have to do it 1 hour a day. I don’t even have to be perfect, I just do it. This has by far been my most preemptive and in crisis toolkit item.

3. Calling Out. I have been very blessed to have a great support system. When I am challenged I reach out to my loved ones. They know not to give advice during these moments, instead it is used to provide encouragement.

4. Hibernate. If I am overloaded by the world, I use my bed as my little island away from the outside.

5. Movement. Natural light and the outdoors not only give my brain time to refocus on something other than my racing thoughts (the smells, sights and sounds) but I attempt to walk or stand next to a part of nature. I have always been a lover of dance and so if I can fit it in, I take a dance class.

I encourage you to use this checklist as catalyst to develop your own self care emergency routine. Even if you are not challenged by mental health, there are many times to use this when you want to realign your energy. Please see my future posts in this series to help you think through how to create a custom tool kit of your very own.

Furkids for the Soul Part 2: Volunteer

Recycling For Beginners

I would call myself a beginner in the land of recycling but I have quickly moved up the ladder. Sharing some of my journey with you, I hope will give you some of the tools to start your own journey or inspire you to continue.

The World Outside

Watching birds next to the solar lights

 As I stare at the page and then out in my garden, nothing comes out. But I do see nature all around me. Trees, rain drops falling off the leaves after an evening storm, flowers bright with some color and vibrant green leaves dropping down from the weight of heavy rains. The sound of birds echo in the air, some flying down and then quickly expanding their wings to take flight.



Today I had plans to write about one topic, but as I sit here surrounded by a world in which I only play a small part, I am reminded that I spend so much time racing through the day, I don’t or in some cases am not willing to take the time to stop, look and listen.












It is in this stillness that I find inner power and creativity. It is also in this stillness that I am faced with my fears. The moment feels like a blank slate. Finding that time to be still continues to be a challenge for me. Even to stop walking and just stand there, my urge is to continuously move forward. To think of the next thing, and the next and the next.

I am just a small piece of the puzzle of life going on all around me. It envelops me and holds me close, it become a bubble. The thunder just sounded and that means more rain to come. The sky is slowly shifting blues. I must now return to my daily to day schedule of work, family and activities. I want to sit here and watch the world go on all around me. This is the place I feel connected. Empowerment is connection. Connection to your being, and then to the world around you.

My outside work space