Hey
@IamNOTalone,
Firstly, I just hope you know how dang strong you are--for what you went through, and for even posting here, now. It's so hard to reach out and speak out, so I'm so glad you are.
But I'm so sorry you had to experience that. It sounds truly horrendous. We were close to losing our home and the fires were super close (100m away), but nothing like your experiences. You are NOT alone. So many of us are going through these exact same feelings--but I know for men, there's a lot of stigma attached to showing emotion.
It's okay to cry. It's good to cry. And I think talking about how you're feeling--whether it's to us here, to the people who love you, or to a professional--is one of the best ways you can work through how you're feeling.
It's so easy to feel overwhelmed by all the trauma we've experienced. It wakes me up--and keeps me up--many nights.
How have you been coping with these feelings? Do you have any self-care you can do?
When I feel overwhelmed, I practise mindfulness techniques and breathing techniques, and enact my self-care plan. It might sound woo woo, but taking care of yourself is the key to resilience. But for me, gratitude also helped. Which might sound ridiculous with all the crap that's happened this year, but I found it helped. More than happy to share any of these techniques or examples with you if you like.
It's okay to not be okay, and this too shall pass
❤️
