Holidays

It’s holiday time here in the US again. We’ll be traveling later today and spending Thanksgiving with the in-laws. Should be nice to spend some time down there with them.

But being with family isn’t what I want to talk about today, it’s being thankful. It may not seem like, as an abuse survivor, there’s a whole lot for you to be thankful about. I’ve been there. I’ve got a ton of things to be thankful for now in my life, but I’m not far removed from the days when it was very different. The days when being alive was the most I could be thankful for, and even that I wasn’t so sure about.

Looking back now, I am thankful that I was still alive after everything. That in itself was no small miracle, given that I had treid to actually commit suicide. But being alive means that there will be a tomorrow, and that gives you another chance to enjoy a day, to make a memory, to have a happy moment. There’s always the hope that tomorrow will be better, that some small thing will spark a smile, or even a laugh, or a moment to share with our loved ones. Let this holiday weekend be filled with those moments. The moments that make life worth living, that fill our memory with joy and happiness. Seize the day to make your moments and share them with the people who are there to share them with..

Things you’re missing if you don’t visit the forums because that’s where I put them:

Brain Chemistry 101

Holiday depression

Child sex abuse survivor tells parents what they need to know

Similar Posts

  • What We Really Need is Compassion

    I see this a lot in our communities as well. Again, empathy when dealing with an individual child, or supporting a loved one with a mental health struggle is great, but trying to feel the pain of all of the abuse survivors we are likely to come across in the world online, is a sure way to overwhelm yourself and burn out. I’ve seen it over and over again. Much like COVID-19, these issues are global, and huge. Trying to take on that much pain is an impossible task, and isn’t actually going to be helpful. Much better, is to develop compassion. As the guests on the show discuss, compassionate emotions push us to act. That act, helping others, does more good for them, but is also good for us. Instead of feeling overwhelmed, and shutting down, we are taking some small amount of control over the situation, and acting on it in a way to helps. We become the helpers that Mr. Rogers so famously talked about. Being a helper, makes us happier. It sets aside our own anxiety and struggle to do something, which is always a good way to move beyond those things.

    So, the question may be not only what are you doing to take care of yourself during this time of great anxiety, but what are you doing to help others?

  • Passing along the Info

    Just passing along an email I got, in case any of you are interested in checking out the site. 🙂 You are invited to check out what’s new at www.catharsisfoundation.org – a site for survivors of all forms of child abuse and we hope you will help us to reach other survivors.Do you have a…

  • Weekend

    The weekend started with the Jazz and Rib Fest Friday night, then checking out the Karamazov Brothers and the finale of the orchestra and fireworks at the Lancaster Festival Saturday night. It’s already been a fun-filled summer weekend. Hope you’re finding a way to enjoy yours!

  • Bipolar Beat Blog

    Over at Psych Central they’ve launched a new blog, devoted to Bipolar disorder. I don’t suffer from bipolar disorder myself, but I know many of you do, and a quick look at the new site gives me the impression that it’s going to be quite good. I’m sure it’ll be just as informative and educational…

  • |

    Are You Telling Your “Story”?

    As an avid user of social media, and the internet in general, I’ve been fascinated watching the popularity of apps like Snapchat, without fully understand the appeal. Recently, however, I’ve blogged about my discovery of how useful something like Snapchat or Instagram’s “story” feature could be: I was a late-comer to understanding what Snapchat could…

  • Depression Blogs

    Psych Central has posted the 2007 Best of the Web -Depression Blogs. There are a number of blogs in there I haven’t read before, I’ll definitely be taking a look. Perhaps while I sit at JFK tonight waiting for my delayed flight home. At least there’s wifi!! Technorati tags: PsychCentral, Depression, Blogs

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

To respond on your own website, enter the URL of your response which should contain a link to this post's permalink URL. Your response will then appear (possibly after moderation) on this page. Want to update or remove your response? Update or delete your post and re-enter your post's URL again. (Find out more about Webmentions.)