***TRIGGER WARNING*** This post will go into some detail about being bullied. It will also talk about the impact on parents mental health when they find out their child is going through something so upsetting. Please only read on if you feel strong enough. Please visit my mental health and suicide prevention support page for more information on organisations that can help if you need it. Thanks for visiting. ***TRIGGER WARNING*** I know this is a complex subject, but as a parent who was thrown into the middle of an unexpected bullying situation, it’s something I know many people will resonate ..read more

***TRIGGER WARNING*** This post will talk about mental illness and disability and the effect the general election is having on these communities. I will mention the frustration caused by cultural bias and marginalisation. Please only read if you feel strong enough. For help with mental health and other issues please visit my get support page. For crisis support please visit my mental health and suicide prevention support page. ***TRIGGER WARNING*** Where on earth do I start with this? I’ve said a few times that I try not to be directly political on this site because I understand why the subjec ..read more

Hi everyone, welcome to the 15th edition of awful jokes as part of the Hold Humour distraction project in the COPE campaign. It’s been noted at home that I’ve been a bit…grumpy…lately. Now, I could blame it on a million things…lack of sleep is probably the favourite, but at the end of the day my attitude is my own, and I need to take responsibility for it. As a result, I’m currently actively working on my grumpiness/happiness balance, and trying to breathe before I react to things. I’m growing. To manage my need to be grumpy without bothering people I love, I thought I’d channel my needs into ..read more

***TRIGGER WARNING*** This post talks about mental health, mental illness and suicide. Although no specific details are shared, please only read on if you feel strong enough and safe enough to do so. For help and support please visit my mental health and suicide prevention support lines page. Ask for help rather than reading on if that’s what you need, and remember you aren’t alone. ***TRIGGER WARNING*** Mental Health Awareness week is, once again, upon us. For people like me, people who talk openly about their mental illness experiences and try to promote healthier ways of managing the sympt ..read more

Hi everyone, welcome to the 14th edition of awful jokes as part of the Hold Humour distraction project in the COPE campaign. As many of you know, this month is significant for me for a few reasons. One, I am challenging myself to complete more than 50 Haikus in the Haiku Hope project before the month ends. Two, I am working throughout the month to try and venture outside for the first time in nearly 3 years – there are regular updates about this on the My Agoraphobia page. Three, at the end of the month I turn 43. Why is this significant? Well, everyone seems to have an age that’s their benchm ..read more

Welcome everyone to the 42nd haiku in the Haiku Hope series. This is part of my creative distractions within the COPE campaign, and a list of personal distraction ideas can be found on the stress hacks page of this website, along with sensory distractions and kid-friendly stress hacks too. We’re now up to 42 haikus, and I’ve challenged myself to get to 50 before the end of the month. For the first time I’ve been struggling to find ideas for them. What a time to get writers block. The last week or so has been tough for newer reasons. I’ve been working under the guise of avoidance being a proble ..read more

Working out how I disguise myself into what the public perceives as ‘normal’ in preperation for my first footsteps outside in nearly 3 years. As someone who’s chosen to start a trial of wearing white during the same month that my nose started bleeding everytime my dog wags her tail, it’s safe to say my fashion hasn’t been well thought through for some time. It’s no secret that I wear a lot of black. Whether severely overweight, or severely underweight, comments about my inability to wear colour have always been the running joke. I don’t even mix in white or a peppering of grey to change things ..read more

Hi everyone, and welcome to my 57th Crap Poem as part of the COPE campaign. First a disclaimer – I watch a lot of crap on the TV as a distraction. It seems, at the moment, I need distracting a lot. One of my favourites (and my partners, although he’d deny it!) is MAFS. What’s MAFS? I hear you cry…no, it’s not my South East dialect telling you to do some number based homework, and no, it’s not a documentary on a new secret department of the military. MAFS stands for Married at First Sight, and the series I’m attached to is made in Australia, although there are UK, USA, New Zealand and many othe ..read more

Welcome everyone to the 41st haiku in the Haiku Hope series. This is part of my creative distractions within the COPE campaign, and a list of personal distraction ideas can be found on the stress hacks page of this website. I’ve made it to 41 haikus, and I’ve made the decision to try and reach 50 before my birthday, which is at the end of this month. Why have I chosen to do this? Well, not only is the end of the month my birthday, it’s also the 3 year anniversary of the last time I left the house. I am unbelievably ashamed of this fact, but I’m trying to make 2024 the year that my isolation en ..read more

***TRIGGER WARNING*** This post talks in detail about the current wait times for NHS care, as well as mental health treatments and physical health pathways. The post will touch on suicidal thoughts and the effect of delays in crisis care. Please only read on if you feel strong enough. You can find more information for mental health and suicide prevention support lines on this website, as well as charities that help with specific health concerns on my Get Support page. Thanks for visiting. ***TRIGGER WARNING*** Last week I spoke about the triggers felt by people in the disability community whe ..read more