The irony – nearly missed that it is mental health awareness week because I’ve been too busy and stressed

My mental health is very good these days, but I have to admit to being a little frazzled this last couple of weeks. I had a clue that it was mental health awareness week yesterday when I saw that the Y12 students at the school where I am chaplain were having a cake sale in aid of mental health. Part of me wanted to go and support them but I knew that I didn’t really have the time or spare capacity, so the ‘caring for myself so I can care for others’ bit of me won and I didn’t go.

I duly forgot all about mental health awareness. Today is my day off and I decided to go for a walk by the river to de-stress in preparation for phone calls about gas/electric meters and council tax for our new property – the reason I’ve been feeling frazzled this last couple of weeks. On my way home from the walk, feeling much better and more able to face the day, the car radio brought me up short with an item on mental health awareness week.

I felt really guilty that I hadn’t gone into the school, and that as someone who blogs about mental health and other stuff I hadn’t done anything about it.

So, for mental health awareness week, I am telling myself and anyone else who needs to hear it, that it is OK to not participate in doing good stuff and raising awareness or supporting good causes if you are not in a position to do so for your own mental health.

(I still feel bad about it though but I am just too tired. I’ll do the ironing and watch Masterchef finals on iPlayer then put some nice clean sheets on our bed, so at least I will feel that I have achieved something )