In today’s world there is a greater emphasis on taking care of one’s mental health. Sometimes within myself, I do not recognize that I need to take care of myself by giving myself some extra time when it is necessary after being exhausted from doing too much. I do not always recognize the need to take a mental health day or when I want to, I feel guilty about doing things for myself instead of putting other priorities first that can be handled differently. There is no health without mental health.

Yesterday, I took my first mental health day in quite some time. It is something that I often feel guilty doing like it is wrong. It comes from realizing in elementary school that I did not want to be there, but the law trumps that fact and eventually school was found a place of socialization later. But there is no wonder why I have not wanted to have a mental heath day. There are things around the house that can be done not to say that my life for the past several months has been a constant non-stop in motion. So, it is no wonder I needed to take a day to get things in order as I have things coming up next week and want them to be in order.

I have noticed that over time things around the house have gotten out of order, and they need to be straightened up for a visit next week. I am getting extra help today, but there are things that I wanted to get done on my own to make them more presentable for the person that helps me. For the last several months I have been living in a constant weekly cycle that has never seemed to end. Part of me liked it, but there is also a part that just needs to be relaxed for once and not overthink things to the point that they overtake my mind.

I always feel guilty about taking time for myself, but when it comes to me recognizing that it is necessary, it is often to the point that I really need to take a day off, so I do not become overwhelmed at the fact that I must further condense what needs to be done at home because I chose to push it even further. Even if there is time to relax or I take certain intervals to relax, that is my way of coping with the challenges that are set forth in my life. Even though I may feel guilty about making the choices that are mine to make, I know deep down they are the right thing because I need to take care of my mental health to stay well in moments that I cannot control.

There may be things that happen during that mental health day that you may not plan or expect that could send your thought process in a way that is not healthy or will ensue unwanted anxiety to happen. However hard it is to want to place the blame or think that the day is ruined by one single statement or event, it is important to not let the negativity that has been encroached overtake the day by making it negative when it was intended to be a good intention because of the autistic mind wanting to hyperfocus on the negative. It just is not worth the energy.

In the end, it is imperative to take care of your mental health in whatever way that is necessary to you. For me recognizing that I needed to take time for myself and focus my energy on a good spot was a positive thing for me. I also chose where to put my energy when there were negative moments that could steal the day, but I chose to not let them steal my day. Never let the negativity steal any day, especially a mental health day.