I think that we can all agree with the fact that mental health and awareness surrounding it has become a heavily important aspect in the way society works now. Social media has had a big part to play in this, with TikTok playing a very pivotal role in that. Many people have learned ways to, not only recognize, but to also deal with things such as: anxiety, depression, childhood trauma, effects of peer pressure, academic induced stress, etc. With people learning how to beware of the warning signs, they gain the capabilities to acknowledge, address, and begin healing from the things that hinder their mental health. This is the part that people tend to glorify: the act of healing in itself. The only downfall of that is, nobody talks about what it takes to get to being healed and what it takes to keep being that way. With that being said, these are the parts of your healing journey that no one truly prepares you for.
Breaking the mold of who you used to be
When you are on your journey towards being a healed version of you, you are essentially taking the things that hindered you or created these issues for you–whether they be mental illnesses or just problems that weren’t allowing you to be the best version of yourself–and working towards changing the blockages in your mindset that stemmed from it. This is so, you have the capabilities to nurture another–mindset– based off of this healed version of you , essentially allowing you to actively work towards being your best self. Now, something like this is always going to be easier said than done. For one, even acknowledging that you even need to work on changing something about yourself is one of the hardest things for humans to do. This is what no one likes to indulge on. Nobody talks about how, it is not only hard to release your mind from the grasps of the old version of yourself but, to also get people to escape from those grasps as well. Outside influences are one of the biggest hindrances to one’s healing journeys because of the image they still have of you. You just have to understand that, you are not going to be able to adjust to the way you are immediately and understand that healing does not come overnight.
Understanding that healing doesn’t come overnight
Becoming a better you does not mean that you simply get to wake up, make a TikTok post, and instantly be that ‘better you.’ That is because, life is not only about what you see on social media and you can’t change within the time it takes you to receive 100 likes on a post. The process of allowing yourself to grow and overcome things that affect your mental health requires constant effort. There truly is no measure of when you are healed because, to be honest, there are always going to be things to get over or battles to fight. Many people don’t understand that growing and healing is not about simply overcoming one issue. It is about learning to acknowledge the things that cause you to be anxious, that cause you to be sad, that cause you to fall to peer pressure, and knowing that those things do not define who you are. Knowing that there is always going to be something you can do in order to pull yourself out of the hold that those intrusive thoughts have on you. You have to want to continue your growth. You have to want to be better. You have to choose to be healed.
Choosing to be healed
There is this constant battle that you now have to deal with, and it is truly a tough one, because you are fighting with two different variations of yourself. With that being said, in my opinion, choosing to be healed is the hardest part about being healed. Waking up every day and choosing to not go back to the mind set, to the ‘you,’ that feels comfortable is the hardest part of wanting to be healed. It is somewhat like waking up and feeling all of the same feelings you used to have, but understanding that there is no benefit in acting on them. You have to wake up every morning and choose to be healed, you have to wake up every morning, and choose yourself!
Overall, you have to understand that healing and the journey you take towards it, is all about YOU. There is no right or wrong way to go about it and there is more to it than what TikTok allows you to see.