I am originally from California, born Long Beach. Now I live in the beautiful city of Tacoma. I just turned 31 this month, and currently I am a server at a couple different locations.

Am I comfortable talking about my mental health? You know, I never used to be as comfortable as I am now, just because growing up, there was always that negative connotation put on sharing your feelings. So I was the kind of person that maybe kept it reserved, even though I kind of wear my heart on my sleeve. People could tell something’s wrong, but I was the kind of person that would maybe keep it inside and not talk about what’s going on.

And recently, these people that have come out and share their stories and their experiences has really inspired me to do the same.

So I’m much more comfortable now talking about my feelings and my mental health.

Growing up, there was a fair share of abuse in many different forms. So carrying that trauma around with you, it really does affect your mental health. It affects the way you think, the way you do things, how you think people view you.

Depression is a lot more than just being sad.

It’s that voice in your head that tells you you’re not good enough. People don’t love you. You’re not going to make it – when it’s not true. You could be surrounded by people that love and care about you, and you can still feel completely alone. And I know that we all have a past that we always carry with us. So that contributes to your mental health.

And the more you don’t talk about it, the more it just sits in the inside of you.

And I probably speak for a lot of people when I say that I’ve let that trauma affect my everyday life. And it has caused depression and anxiety, even when I’ve gone over these humps, I am like, ‘all right, I’m good’ but then it comes back up – that trauma that we carry around with us.

We’ve all been through a lot. I know I have. But the connections that I’ve made, the support system that I have is just is amazing.

Depression can make you feel isolated and alone, even if you just have one person that you feel completely comfortable talking with, that release of everything that you’re keeping bottled up. I mean, just having one person, I think, can make all the difference.

Some people are a lot more reserved, like don’t want to share. But if they could find one person they’re comfortable with, I think it can make all the difference in the world.

How do I manage my mental health? I got to say that is still a learning process. It’s only honestly been recently that I started doing better. And by better, I mean, hanging out with my friends, reaching out to people that love and care about me, even some unexpected people. So I’m still learning. But I would say getting back in touch with things that you love doing because depression completely zaps you of your passion, your motivation, your energy. Sometimes even doing a couple of dishes can just feel completely draining. It does the same thing for your social life, for your mental being.

I think getting back in touch with things that make you feel good is one of the most important things.

That’s what I’ve been doing. And I’m still trying to figure it out. I feel so much better, because even though I’ve known people that love and care about me, it helps to be reminded of it. And when you isolate yourself, that voice that tells you no one loves you, nothing’s going to get better. It’s going to be louder and louder. I think when you reach out to people and you’re doing things that you love, that voice might still be there, but it’s a lot more manageable. You can say, you know what? I am enough. I am good enough. So doing things that you love to do that make you feel good, I think, is a tremendous helpful step to improving your mental health.