Journal 1: Cleaning Mental Closet
Question 3
Each of us has dealt with some mental or emotional baggage at some point in our lives. I have had my fair share of mental troubles throughout my life. I have an introverted personality type, and I also rarely share my problems with others, unless it’s quite dire. I had never thought of this as a problem until one point when I almost fell sick due to a stressful situation. I encountered challenges at school, but because I kept it all in, I started getting sick. Since then, I decided to be more deliberate about my mental health and started cleaning my ‘mental closet.’
First, I joined a peers group in college, where I found the space and opportunity to be open with other young people. We usually met on Thursdays for an hour-long session, and it’s during these periods that I finally got the chance to be open about myself to others. We often discussed a variety of topics, including our challenges at school and in the work environment. As a result, my mental closet was becoming cleaner and cleaner, as I was sharing more as opposed to keeping all the problems to myself.
I also started writing more often, especially during my stressful periods. I would document my experiences in a diary, and this helped me make sense of my thoughts. As a result, some of the things which used to upset me no longer did, because while writing, I realized I was ridding myself of any negative emotions.