300 - Q & and A

In June, I conducted a week long poll on twitter, where 8 out of 9 people responded they were interested in a q & a for my 300th entry on this blog. 

I posted on twitter and facebook the same image as above, letting you, my readers, ask me questions, which I shall now answer.

Laura Nuttall’s questions

If you were handed 'The Book of Lucien' and it was your entire life story, past, present and future until you die. Would you read it and why?"

  

I want to say, No. Despite curiosity as to certain struggles, I hate spoilers. I probably would keep it on a shelf and fight the urge to read. I might start with the stories I already know, but would put it down. Also, as I'm highly influenced by science-fiction, I'd think that the book is one set of possibilities and that if I read it and took different paths, I may alter events and outcomes, and the fear of making it worse would prevent me from attempting anything and thus, might miss out on the rest of my life. 

Some more - what are your 3 favourite animals? Would you like children? If so, Any favourite names? Tell us about your favourite day of your life so far?

Favorite animals is a very difficult choice, I'll say from the ones I had or like seeing online, dogs, cats and hamsters. 

When I was 10, I decided I wouldn't want to be a parent, nor have children. I thought I may adopt, but it never happened and now I don't even want to do that, due to my age, lack of energy, and disliking , rowdy, disrespectful children and far too anxious to envision worrying about children's well-being and my own father-hen attitudes. Even if I had wanted children, I wouldn't have chosen their names in advance and would prefer to do so after their birth. 

My favorite day is an even tougher question. I loved my wedding but also many days when I went hiking in nature, or learned some new, or realized/understood something that had been bugging me. When I think of it, I have more happy days that I can imagine in first glance at my traumatic life, and therefore cannot choose one as the best and only one. 

Angela’s questions :

What made you want to start blogging?

Has your blog helped you in recovery?

As Kerry’s questions are closely related, I'll reply all together :

I was going to ask the same as Angela do you find it therapeutic to blog? . Do you find reading other people's blogs about MH helpful? . What Inspires you to write? Do you use it like a journal? 

I hadn't ever planned on blogging. My wife convinced me to blog my movie and book reviews instead of posting them on facebook where no one was reading due to the format FB had chosen, and thus, my first blog was for that end. 
A few months later, she reiterated that I had to share my stories and experiences, at least for me, but also in case it could help others who struggled with therapist's haughty attitudes and feel trapped in an unsuitable therapy. 

My blogs became the most regular form of writing I ever done, and help my recovery as I pour my emotions down into a website, an image that I use or create for each entry, and the learning curves in composing my texts, as well as better understanding myself.

I do read other blogs as I want to support others in their own efforts, and sometimes I do get inspired from what I read. 

What inspires is a good question ; for this present mental health blog, it's usually my experiences in therapy, learning new things on the ways I function, so in this majority of cases, it's basically my life that is the source.
In other cases, I either read someone's story or coping methods, etc, which inspires me to adapt to my needs.
Lastly, there are some entries that are about lifestyle and social causes I'm passionate about ; those may result from reading a new article, or just general things about those specific subjects (feminism, lgbtq, etc).

Regarding my other blogs, I post photos that I take, or review books, movies, music or shows, and thus, their content comes from reading, or watching, or listening, respectively. 

Beth's question : 

Question for you, Lulu! What is one thing you have learnt about yourself during recovery? 

In recovery, I'd say I learned that it was okay to pace myself, and that nothing is linear. The I am worthy of healing, and to take my time towards it.  

The most valuable things I learned in CBtherapy are to be patient and to practice self love, self kindness, and to cut myself some slack, trying again if and when I fail at a task. It's okay to have occasional unpredictable exposures, as it keeps you alert and shows you the road you can take later on, once you are ready. 

I learned how to better cope in social situations, and that even after 30 years of difficulties, I could finally attend many more situations, from cafés to art exhibits, from cinemas to excursions to Paris. 


Screen-shots of the questions