Compassion Interest
Rewire Your Mind To Be Kind!
Happy Writing Month, Sweet Teas!
I hope inspiration has struck you this month! I adore April, and appreciate you all so much for encouraging my writing this month… maybe one day I will be able to share an actual book with you! Thank you, as always, to my patrons for allowing me to continue Tea with HB! If you’d like to support my work whilst accessing bonus content, please become a patron!
Have Your Say!
Disability Pride Month is coming up in July, and I have plenty planned, including a disability & dating series that you voted for on instagram, so if you there are any topics or questions that you’d like me to talk about during July, please get in touch! Whether you struggle with using a mobility aid, how to explain your illness to a friend, or you are non-disabled and would like to learn about something you have been too afraid to ask about, there is no such thing as a silly question!
Functional Neurological Disorder
This month marks 1 whole year of being seizure free! Although I still sometimes experience symptoms of Functional Neurological Disorder, I cannot begin to express how grateful I am that the large convulsions have stopped. In the midst of it all, there appeared to be no cause, we assumed it was the cumulative impact of years of constant pain. It wasn’t until 2021, two and a half years after the seizures started, that a private neurologist was able to shed some light- or at least share his hypothesis- that childhood trauma/abuse and PTSD could be connected to the seizures. I was already searching for a therapist qualified in EMDR to help with my mental health, so a new diagnosis of PTSD wasn’t entirely unexpected. This is not the most comfortable thing for me to talk about, but I am doing so in the hopes that it might help somebody else with FND. I would not say therapy has ‘cured’ me, but looking into the past, especially if there are traumatic events you haven’t acknowledged or processed, might be a very useful place to start.
Rewire Your Mind To Be Kind
It has taken me years, and finally finding a therapist who understands chronic pain, to realise this: pain is not a punishment. It is our body crying for help. Pain is a message. What is your body trying to tell you? Even those of us who don’t deal with constant pain will have habits that were formed to protect us, but are now causing us harm. I deal with self critical thoughts, the idea that I deserve my pain. But you might deal with putting pressure on yourself, maybe you hate how your body looks, maybe you blame yourself when something goes wrong in life, or maybe you feel like everyone hates you or thinks you are a burden. As John Green says, pain demands to be felt. And pain is, of course, physical and psychological. These thoughts hurt us! So what can we do? Listen. At the very least, be kind to ourselves. If stress compounds, surely compassion can gain interest too? It just takes practice! This video from Anna Akana has totally changed my mindset, and I urge you to check out her YouTube channel if you struggle with your mental health! Replace those hurtful thoughts with self compassion, and remember that being self aware is a huge accomplishment in the first place! You are not alone.
Politics
I have been a District Councillor for the Green Party for the last couple of years, and have decided not to stand for election again, due, in short, to ableism. The Conservative Government doesn't think disabled people should have access to politics which should not be surprising, considering the way they treat the 16 million disabled members of the population. Please make your voice heard. Write to your political representative and tell them you care about fair, diverse, and representative politics. Ask them what they are doing to make sure the voices of the most vulnerable are heard, and together hopefully we can inspire a more inclusive system! Scope have a template email that you can send today about the extra costs of disability- it takes 2 minutes, just add your name and address!
☀️ Good News: [redacted], [redacted] lots of good stuff that I can’t talk about yet 😄🥰🥳
🎶 Music: Turbulence by P!NK
📚 Book: The Secret Life of Addie La Rue by VE Schwab
📺 TV: Traitors (UK version)
Who wouldn’t want to watch 22 strangers play an elaborate game of werewolf/mafia?!
🍿Movie: Dave
A political comedy that is just as relevant today as it was when it was made in 1993
🍜 Food: Chinese Takeaway, Thai Soup, Sushi, Grilled Salmon, so much good food this month!