As I close out the near fourth decade of my life. I am now finally understanding myself and how I operate as I have never really had the motivation to do so in the past, but after having many relapses and not the most optimal mental health the past few years, I have been working at day services and at home learning about my mental health and autism challenges, the importance of treatment and how to live my best life with my challenges.

For one reason or another over the past few years, I have always known that something was not right with me. When I had spent over a year in and out of psychiatric hospitals and a residential treatment facility, it was there that I had started to take a grasp on my challenges. Even as it was back then, nowadays I do not totally know how severe they could be if I was not caring for my mental health as I was not doing a few instances over the past few years.

I had to work at understanding through webinars and even YouTube clips of TV shows portraying some of my conditions to see how hurtful it could be if I did not adhere to my mental health medication. I have always understood the reality of what a psychiatric hospital unit was like and the situation that it involved and the dangers of ending up there, but I had always flirted with disaster because when I was not my best, I had always believed that someone would come and save me from my disaster.

The reality of those lifelines and continual extra chances have nearly expired and I now understand that there is a necessity for me to do what is necessary for me to take care of my mental health by being adherent to my mental health medications, being fully regimented to them, understanding the necessity of them and that I am fortunate to have them. That there is a real danger if I do not take them and that I had to set up protocols and safeguards to ensure that I took my medication on time. But it has taken me to understand the necessity of it and how important it is to have it in my life.

It is knowing how to care for myself and take care of my mental health each and every day in each situation and what is necessary to not only prevent a negative reaction in environments that I cannot control, but understanding how to ensure that I never go back into a state of relapse because I finally understand how important it is to care for my mental health and make it a priority in my life.

It has been quite amazing that I have done the necessary things to learn about my challenges and fully understand the dangers of not caring for myself in the way that I need to. I now realize that it is important to care for myself and make my mental health a priority, always, no matter what. Mental Health always matters and is important as my physical health.