#Positivity

So here we are, rapidly approaching the end of April. I said at the end of my last post that l was going to try and be more positive this month, so I owe you an update.

At the start of the month, I decided to tweet a positive quote every day, to start the day by thinking about happy things and to give myself a little kick of inspiration to get through the day. By and large, I succeeded. I only missed two days, but they were days when I was at a Girlguiding conference and was tweeting so much I completely forgot. Those days were so positive and inspiring that I've forgiven myself for not thinking about being positive and inspired by the second-hand words of someone else.

So do I feel more positive?

I'm not going to lie and tell you that everything is hunky dory, because it's not. April has been hard. I struggled at the start of the month to accept that my own insecurities, lack of self-belief and inability to let go have been and will be the things that stop me from moving forward and achieving the things I know I want. After a week of annual leave, when I stayed in bed for most of my time off because it was easier than trying to work out where to start, I felt guilty and embarrassed that I had wasted a precious week of time I wouldn't get back.

Life has thrown a mountain of shit in my path this month - wonderful friends have lost much-wanted pregnancies, have been diagnosed with eating disorders, or have struggled with life-changing decisions, forced by crippling anxiety or depression; hundreds of people lost their lives trying to escape from their homes, travelling across the sea searching for a better life; and this week thousands further have died in a natural disaster that couldn't have been predicted.

I have been told multiple times recently that I care too much, that I worry too much about other people. And for a long time, I have been led to believe that this is a bad thing. But I can't stop caring - I know now that it is a fundamental part of what makes me me. I know that I will never forget a friend in need, regardless of where they are in the world or what burden they are carrying. Because I know that when I am struggling and lost, they will be there to hold my hands and walk by my side until we stumble upon a way out.

There are some people in all of our lives who, seemingly effortlessly, are able to function as responsible grown up people, going through their days without making a complete fool of themselves, multitasking without dropping balls left right and centre, and making the rest of us feel completely inadequate as human beings. I know it is not intentional, yet I have spent much of my adult life being intimidated and overwhelmed by these people. But I realised this month that it is not intended to make me feel that way. These people carry their own burdens. They are just them and I am just me.

There are just a few minutes of April left, and I don't want to leave this post on a negative note, because in spite of everything I just told you, I do feel better. I have really enjoyed the process of finding a positive quote each morning which reflects my feelings on that day, and sharing it with the world. I've found a lot of comfort in looking back over quotes from previous days, and remembering how I felt and why I chose that particular quote. I don't know if it just the quotes, or the fact that the sun has been shining (for the most part - it was both warm and dry AND cold and snowing on Monday), but I do feel better. Right now, I don't feel so completely bogged down with life that I can't focus on getting through each day. I genuinely do feel like I can deal with the mountains, although I know I can't do it alone.

Tomorrow is the start of a new month, and I am going to continue with the tweeting of positive quotes. And tomorrow evening, I have my first real appointment with a new counsellor. Like I say, I can't do this alone, and the thing I miss most about therapy is the space to talk solely about me without feeling the need to relieve someone else of their burdens in return. I never thought I'd say that.

If you'd like to read some of my favourite #Positivity quotes you can find me on Twitter at @rosybee1, though I'm sure I'll share them with you over time.

Keep smiling you wonderful people.