By Meg Pound, Content Team Contributor

Mental illness is tough. Hugely difficult. One of the hardest parts of my days is getting up in the morning. The realisation that it is another day of battling compulsions and intrusive thoughts. I feel drained before I have gotten out of bed. It is the fear of the unknown. Is it going to be another day of feeling this way? Will I ever feel better? 

I like to remind myself of one powerful fact.

I have survived every single bad day of my life.

I have done that. 

I have gotten through the very worst times that I never thought I would. For example, I went on holiday last August and was 90% convinced I was going to die. Even in the darkest pits of fear and anxiety, I still had that 10% glimmer of possibility that I could survive it. OCD and anxiety thrive on the ‘What if’. ‘But what if the bad thing happens this time’. We have to remind ourselves of all of the times we have proven OCD and anxiety wrong. We are much more resilient than we think we are. 

Reflection upon the events we never thought we’d survive is a powerful thing to do to gain back control. We can overcome the fear and come through the other side shining.

I feel anxious about writing this article. ‘What if’ nobody believes me, ‘What if’ something bad happens once this is published. But I also know that I wouldn’t be able to prove OCD and anxiety wrong if I did what they said. I write these articles because I want to raise awareness and help people reading them feel less alone. Something else that is important to me is acknowledging my resilience and bravery for writing about my experiences. I would never have dreamed of doing something like this a year or so ago. It is vulnerable but honest. If we don’t talk about our experiences then people will continue to suffer in silence. I hope I can inspire people to feel brave and resilient alongside their mental illness. It doesn’t define us. We are so much more than our struggles. Sending all my recovery wishes to everyone.