#elisawho

[elisaxwho]

We all constantly complain about just how hard adulting is. Yes we have been lied to. Growing up turned out to not be as fun as we were promised in those fabulous films. However, what I’ve begun to notice recently has been the joys of adulthood. Those little moments where you might stop and think: “Yes! This is just like the movies!”. One of those moments for me, is doing things on my own more often, without feeling weird about it. Having been the type of teenager to barely ever do anything by myself due to feeling socially judged, it suddenly dawned on me just how swiftly this has changed as I transitioned into my early 20s. Maybe it is because I’m older and I’ve started to care less. Or maybe it’s because I’m getting better mentally. I can’t lie on this blog because my mission is to be completely transparent; I grew up with depression and anxiety. I grew up with it hindering me from living my best life. To not wanting to live my best life. It honestly fills me with so much anger to think about how much I’ve missed during my teens and in the beginning of my 20s. How many times did I cancel plans just to sit in my room all night binging food and Netflix as a method of self-punishment. How many times did I skip going to the library or to the gym because of my anxiety. And how many times did I not leave the house because I hated how I looked. But I’m no longer scared of watching a film alone at the cinema, in fact, I thrive in doing so. I’ve always been the type of person to treasure my independence and here I am, finally accepting it. Finally embracing it! This is not to say that I’m not scared at all. Don’t get me wrong, sometimes I still fall into these patterns now, especially the last one lol. I still get anxious to walk up to the cinema on my own, or to sit in a café alone for hours, and don’t even get me started on taking myself out to dinner; I still haven’t managed to build up the courage to do that. But I’m working on it. I’ve figured that once you pass the threshold of simply doing it. Once you pass the threshold of ignoring the fear and just doing it. Said fear passes. It just melts away and relief comes to take its place. Pride swallows you instead and happiness follows. You relax into the moment and all is easy again. And it becomes easier each time you do it. Nowadays I consider myself so lucky that I get to lose myself in the crowds of the city. In the chaos that surrounds me. Oh how beautiful that chaos is! It is just like the movies. I now get to experience life on my own. I get to enjoy my own company for an entire evening without the thought of being a burden to the world. I’ve begun to accept the fact that I am here. I am alive and I have a right to take up space. I have the right to be seen and to enjoy the life that I was given. It may not have been my choice to be alive, but I might as well take it now. And the more I take care of myself, of my mental health, of my spirituality and of my body. The more I begin to enjoy being alive.

Thank you for reading this, if you’ve made it so far. Even I’m not sure what this is. I had an urge to write as I was leaving the cinema the other day. So I leaned on a wall and pretended I was texting as I filled up a note page on my phone. And decided to post it because, why not? I just felt the need to share this. To share with you all that life does get easier and everything passes. No matter how hard things get, you will still get moments of absolute splendour. I’m slowly working on accepting my life. It’s a process and I’ll keep you updated.

I hope your day is filled with sunshine!

Love,

Elisa.

[elisaxwho]

The situation in the world right now has taken a toll on all of us. It is always hard to be faced with the idea that we are powerless. It is definitely in times like these that we have to ask ourselves: “What role do I play in this?”. What is our individual purposes towards the greater good? How can we help raise the frequency of the world right now? This post is all about the little changes we can do as individuals to help society right now.

The first one I want to talk about is to take care of yourself. I truly believe that the biggest changes in the outside world happen from the inside out. We must nurture ourselves first in order to nurture the world around us. We are amidst of a pandemic, therefore, self-isolation is essential. If you are able to do so, do not pass up the chance. If you still have to leave the house for work, make sure you minimise your outings only for necessary purposes. When you do go out, make sure to not be too close to other humans. Be helpful and be kind but keep a safe distance. You are still allowed to enjoy a walk in the park and soak up some sunshine, but be responsible about it. When you keep yourself safe you are henceforth keeping society safe.

The second thing is hygiene. You have heard it everywhere and you will hear it again here: WASH YOUR DAMN HANDS! And I don’t mean just throw some soap on it and water and call it a day. I mean thoroughly wash your hands. Whenever you come back to your house, wash them. Disinfect your door handles and for the love of all that is good and pure please disinfect your phone! That thing is dirty as hell! Disinfect any surface that comes into contact with your hands and the outside world and if you have a car, remember to disinfect that too and the keys! You can even go a step further and disinfect your shoes before coming back into the house and just keep yourself clean. With that said, I’d also recommend getting some hand cream because all that soap is bound to dry them out and we don’t want crusty hands! Another obvious thing is hand gel, if you managed to get some before they all vanished in the great supply shortage of 2020. Use it when you walk into building, if it is necessary for you to be out and about, and when you walk out. But don’t use it to replace the fine art of simply washing your hands whenever you get the chance!

Now onto nicer things, number three is to check on your family and friends. Drop them messages more often and call them up for a chat. Facetime them and go about your normal routine as if you were actually seeing them face to face. See if they need anything. Support each other! There is not greater time to come together in union and extend kindness to one another. If you’re healthy enough to go to the shops for your grandparents or anyone in your life who is at a higher risk, do so. Extending kindness is one of the most beautiful things we can do for each other right now!

Here’s a few other things you can do!

·     When you go to the shops try to let older people skip the line as those are extremely long right now and the most vulnerable need to lessen their time in exposed environments as much as possible.

·     Avoid touching things. I probably already said this but just avoid it. And if you’re out and about DO NOT TOUCH YOUR FACE until you’re safe back home and have washed your hands!  

·     Practice meditation and just send some love into the world, we need it more than ever right now!

·     Share as much positivity and knowledge on your social media platforms, keep people informed without expanding fear. When we share knowledge with love and each do our small bits: things get better.

·     Use this time for introspection. Evaluate your part in the world. Get the things you’ve been putting off doing done. Get creative. Paint, draw, write, sing, dance, play instruments, watch movies, play board games, play video games, have fun! Expand your inner world!

I think this is about it. If you have anything to add, share this post and comment your additions. Let’s start a chain of helpfulness! Most importantly, however, is that you keep yourself safe and remember that this too shall pass!

With extremes amount of love

-      Elisa♡