For mentalhealthawarenessweek our team at one2one are sharing their personal stories. Here, our Practice Manager Tracy shares hers. #speakyourmind
Mental Health is a subject very close to my heart. My mum suffers from severe clinical depression and has done since my childhood. It has become a way of life for me and my older sister Michelle, we have learned to cope with it and we are extremely lucky to be such a close family. It is very hard on times but through it all I remain very proud of Mum, she is my hero! To feel like she does and carry on shows the strength that she has.
I have always been a very upbeat person, always smiling, singing or making a joke about something. I have had an extremely tough 12 months and true to form I have put a plaster on my emotions and carried on. During this lockdown period I have been forced to stop and reflect. I am now starting a journey of self-love and discovery which is well overdue. I am excited to see where this journey takes me but am finding it very difficult to face these emotions. I have learnt not to judge a book by its cover, you really do not know what is going on inside of a person, we all have baggage that we need to offload.
I am grateful for my wonderful family, friends and work family who are supporting me through this and I am hopeful about the future. It’s ok to not be ok so try not to fake it. Reach out to someone you feel comfortable talking to.