Hello, It's Hannah

Hello! Hannah here. I'm almost halfway through my summer break (WHAT) and finding the motivation to write has been really hard. I've been busy with summer activities as well as a summer class and a math tutorial thing (which I passed, by the way). But, I came up with a whole list of posts to write this week and I'm quite excited about them. Today's, in particular, is going to be fun because it's something that I came up with myself: a method for kicking a bad mood. Between bad sleep and general anxiety, I often find myself in a bad mood. A lot of times, that bad mood doesn't have a specific reason and therefore is difficult to fix. I've lost a lot of work time and reading time to my bad moods, and I wanted to find a way to kick that in the butt ASAP. So I experimented. I tried different ways of kicking my bad mood. Some didn't work at all, and some only worked for a little bit. Frustrated, I combined a bunch of these things and BOOM. My bad mood was ki...

Hello, friends! After a long and difficult month, I am back and ready to put my thoughts out into the world. Today we're focusing on a topic that is not talked about enough and something that I've had to deal with for the past few months.  You all know what depression and anxiety are. I've done posts on them and talked about them on my social media for as long as this blog has been in existence. However, there is a side to these disorders that is overlooked and not talk about nearly as much as it should be.  Depression and anxiety do not look them same for everyone. It manifests differently in everyone, and for me, it's high functioning. This is a term I was not aware of until very recently, and it made everything that I was experiencing make so much more sense. So, what does high functioning mean? High functioning anxiety/depression means that someone goes about their day to day lives appearing perfectly okay and healthy, but below the surface, they are experie...

Hello, friends. Today' I'm tackling a topic that's not talked about a whole lot, but that I believe is important to acknowledge. Today, we discuss seasonal depression. WHAT IS SEASONAL DEPRESSION? Seasonal depression, also known as seasonal affective disorder, is a mood disorder involving depression that occurs at the same time every year. It is usually self-diagnosable, can be treated within months, and must be treated by a medical professional. SYMPTOMS OF SEASONAL DEPRESSION The symptoms of seasonal affective disorder include: apathy anxiety general discontent loss of interest in certain activities mood swings excessive sleepiness insomnia fatigue  appetite change irritability social isolation depression lack of concentration TREATMENT Seasonal affective disorder can be treated a number of ways and within months. These ways include: talk therapy self care (physical exercise) medication (anti-depressants and Selective Se...

Hello friends! After a crazy three weeks of getting ready for college, getting settled into college, and starting my very first college classes, I’m back and ready to blog! And for those of you who don’t know, I’m a freshman at the University of North Texas, and I’m majoring in Psychology. Now, back to the blogging. As you know, it’s Monday, and that means another Mental Health Monday. Today’s focus is Bipolar Disorder. Bipolar Disorder, also known as manic depression, is a brain disorder associated with unusual mood swings that make daily life and daily tasks difficult. SYMPTOMS Manic Episodes The symptoms for bipolar disorder manic episodes include: Feel very “up” or elated Have a lot of energy Have increased activity levels Feel “jumpy” Have trouble sleeping Become more active than usual Talk really fast about a lot of different subjects Be agitated or irritable Feel like their thoughts are going very fast Think th...

Hello, friends! I know it’s been a while, but I just wanted to take some time off for vacation and getting ready to head to college in FIVE days! So exciting! Anyway, I’m back and ready to share another Mental Health Monday with you. Today’s topic is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, otherwise known as OCD. WHAT IS OCD? Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, or OCD, is defined as a type of anxiety disorder that produces unreasonable thoughts and behaviors that lead to compulsive behavior(s). ODC is commonly displayed through a fear of germs or a need to keep everything organized in a specific manner. The symptoms for OCD begin gradually and can vary in the different parts of life. SYMPTOMS The symptoms for OCD include: Compulsive behavior Compulsive hoarding Repetitive movements Social isolation Impulsivity Meaningless repetition of words Anxiety Depression Panic attacks Fear Nightmares Repeatedly going over thoughts TREATMENT Treatment...

Hey guys! I’m back with another Mental Health Monday. Today’s topic: depression. WHAT IS DEPRESSION? Depression is defined as a mood disorder causing a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest. The cause of depression could be a chemical imbalance in the brain or a traumatic event, such as the death of a loved one. Depression heavily impacts daily life and activities. SYMPTOMS The symptoms of depression can vary, but the most common ones include: General discontent Anxiety Loss of interest Mood swings Excessive sleepiness Insomnia Agitation Excessive crying Irritability Social isolation Lack of concentration Thoughts of suicide Poor appetite TREATMENT The treatment for depression is usually medication, therapy, or a combination of both. There are different types of medication that can be prescribed by a doctor for depression, and also different types of therapy. It just depends. A NOTE FROM ME ...