okkkk like i dont know how to properly phrase this but i feel like theres this idea that there is a singular way to be mentally ill presented in a lot of tumblr posts. specifically that there is a conflict between posts that say “try and get up shower do your work” and “its okay to stay home if you need to. its okay to not be able to do things sometimes”. im specifically thinking of the post thats going around about how tumblr enables self sabotaging behaviors. which i guess i can kinda see that? but at the same time i feel like its possible that maybe those posts arent made for you???
like it comes off as really condescending to say that “self care posts with movie links and pretty noises dont do anything” because like theyre definitely helpful to some people. or that the “correct” way to do self care is to bully yourself into doing your work because thats not always right for everyone. “do your dishes. take a shower. apologize to your friends and stop laying around and feeling sorry for yourself” like thats a great idea in theory except. lol. i cant do that. sometimes if i force myself to do that it will set me back even further and compromise my mental health even more. it works for some people but not everyone and its honestly really condescending to phrase it as if *this* is the /real/ answer.
maybe the problem is that the cutesy self care posts are geared towards teenagers. i feel like people need to start recognizing that all advice isnt relatable to every person on this website. sometimes posts that are “i love you and i think youre cute” wont help adults but they do seem to resonate with a lot of mentally ill teenagers?? a lot of those posts are made by mentally ill teenagers.
either way i dont need a post going around telling me im gross and not trying hard enough. everyone else tells me that already. like this is the first year of school ive allowed myself to take days off for mental health? like sometimes its reassuring to hear “hey you might not have gotten much done today but im still proud of you”. allowing myself to fail but still take pride in minor accomplishments is a new thing and a lot better than berating myself over fucking up simple tasks i can literally not do???
but its not the same for everyone
because
everyone has different experiences and needs
wow
so tldr there isnt one mental health experience and just because something isnt helping you doesnt mean its useless and juvenile and detrimental to all
(via vvampirebat)