Floating Through Emotional Storms

 1. Funky Fidgets Shop ( link ) This shop was initially created on social media during lockdown and now they have a website and a physical shop. They add new fidgets on their website every Tuesday and have the best selection of fidgets I have seen in any shop. 2. Ali's Sensory Boxes ( link ) This is a family shop created in memory of their daughter/sister, Ali. They have a range of individual items but what I like the most is they have sensory boxes varying in price where you say what your likes and dislikes are and they will create a box for you. It's nice to get a surprise in the post.

This is only my experience but I would love to hear if anyone can relate or would like to share their own experience. I remember being in my early twenties and my psychologist telling me that I'd probably start to feel better and not struggle so much with EUPD in my thirties or early forties. At the time I was really upset that I'd have to continue struggling for so long and the way things were described to me it was as if I would somehow be cured and have no symptoms of EUPD when that time arrived. I can see why some professionals think this is the case but, for me at least, it has only been a surface change. At some point maybe a few years ago my behaviour changed a lot. I had a big reduction in self harm, overdosing, and suicide attempts. This was not because I wasn't feeling intense emotions any more or because I didn't want to harm myself or die, I very much still felt these things, but I found as I got older I wasn't able to deal with the pain of more serious ...

  I find affirmations very cringey and I'm not very good at being nice to myself so when I try them I get into an argument with myself. The research says that you don't have to believe the affirmations you are telling yourself, that the more you repeat them the stronger they become in your mind and this can positively improve wellbeing. A while ago I found the best small business and supportive community ever - Sugar and Sloth (link) . They are so amazing and provide things like fun worksheets based on therapy techniques, cute pins and colouring books, motivational and understanding emails, and so much more, and have an amazing group on Facebook Sugar and Sloth Besties (link) . Through Sugar and Sloth I found a way to use affirmations but I still get to be a little horrible to myself. I love their colouring books and they are full of sweary affirmations. So I can be a mindful by doing the colouring and also try and process the messages without getting into an argument with myse...

  I love getting things in the post that are not scary DWP letters and often find myself buying lots of things online that I really don't need. On arrival they give me a quick burst of contentment but then I just go back to feeling like I need something more. I was introduced to a positive pen pals group on Facebook (link) a number of years ago. This group is open to people who have mental health problems and/or physical health problems with the goal of communication, sharing, and spreading positivity. I had a few pen pals, you can write a post asking for pen pals and have however many you are comfortable with and write to people who are in the same country as you or further afield, and really enjoyed receiving their letters and sending replies back. A really nice thing about the group is that people usually include extras in letters such as motivational quotes and handmade crafts. I have a couple of scrapbooks where I have saved the extras people have sent me. Getting colourful a...

 I am a 38 year old female living in Scotland. I have struggled with my mental health pretty much all of my life that I can remember and have been diagnosed with Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder/Borderline Personality Disorder Disorder, potentially Primary Psychotic Disorder NOS and also potentially Autism. I'm going to refer to myself as having autism throughout the blog just because it is easier than saying potential autism and means I don't have to change the wording if I am ever diagnosed. I'm not entirely sure how this blog is going to turn out. The ideas I have at the moment are to share coping mechanisms, insights into how my illnesses personally affect me vs how professional opinions differ, book reviews, and a jumble of other things. I might run out of things to post about but I hope the posts are beneficial to at least one person. Where to start?