“Have you ever been depressed?” 32,000 feet in the air, my mom turned to me, clear-eyed and interested, and asked me this question.
I thought to myself she doesn’t know? Well, of course, she doesn’t. I don’t exactly broadcast my mental health the way I should. Staring out the plane window, I took a deep breath and responded plainly with “yes.”
Do you lie awake at night and think about the things you could have or should have said but didn’t? I do. Constantly. Here is my list.
In the sixth installment of Awkward, Anxious, and Average, Jayla can’t sleep. Her intrusive alarm clock keeps her up at night.
My blogging tribe, Laura Spoonie and Johnzelle, tagged me to participate in creating a “Pick me up playlist” for World Mental Health Day. Laura created the tag, a brilliant way to spread positivity and light.
In this installment of Awkward, Anxious, and Average, Jayla is overthinking her first date.
“I would like the chicken fingers.” “I would like the chicken fingers, please.” “I would like…” “What are you doing?” Her voice broke my rehearsing. Why do I think out loud? For once, I will not overthink it, I am going to try and play it cool. “Hmm, […]
All I need to do is breathe. Breathe and clear my mind. Feet planted firmly on the ground? Check. Palms faced up, on my lap? Check. Great! Now, take a deep breath in and slowly exhale. Okay, you are doing it, Jayla. Just keep it up. Wait, you’re […]
Before I could give it a name to it, I exhibited signs as of being an extremely anxious child. My parents would tell my teachers I was very shy and needed more time to warm up. I had regular stomachaches, was irritable, sensitive, and hardly spoke.
You, sitting there drinking an iced latte with your friends. Me, thinking of what to say to you or how to even get your attention. I like your shirt, that’s one of my favorite shows, are you a fan? I also like my beverages cold, not with whip […]
After a concussion in 2017, I developed noise sensitivity. Everyday noises became intolerable. I wanted to express it in a poem.
