Nutrition has always been an issue for me, carbs and sugar are very much my downfall. I have now committed myself to my mental health and fitness journey and a huge positive contributing factor to that is eating healthier and ensuring my body now gets the nutrition it needs. My lifestyle is changing and I need better eating and drinking habits for my body to heal and be able to progress.
The 1st change I have made is drinking water, I barely drink water which I know is awful but this journey is about honesty and honestly some days I don’t even drink a glass of water. So that was the 1st thing that needed to change, I have frozen berries and a scoop of collagen in my water bottle. I then use the berries to get a portion of fruit down me, I’m really not a lover of fruit so the past two mornings I’ve added it to a protein yoghurt for my breakfast. Any tips on a healthy way to eat my portion of berries are very welcome. I then refill my water bottle and drink that.
I’m making gradual changes as I get easily overwhelmed and I don’t want to affect my mental health or have my brain process these changes as anything but positive. I’m happy with the start I’ve made, it’s been a long time coming. #mentalhealth #mentalhealthmatters #mentalhealthawareness #mentalhealthrecovery #ptsd #ptsdrecovery #healthyeating #healthyfood #healthyliving #healthylifestyle #healthybodyhealthymind #nutrition #recovery #recoveryjourney #exercise #runningtherapy

Two months of not smoking, that’s huge for me. Still very much taking it a day at a time and still using nicotine mints and gum but even that is getting gradually less. Been trying to work on running faster so I’ve been doing shorter faster runs. Can’t say I’m getting the same benefit from it mental health wise as it was supposed to be about escaping into my runs to switch off I’m actually not sure how it ended up the way it has. I do want to beat my 5k PB but once I achieve that I can go back to enjoying my runs again. I’m honestly unsure that it’s the right move for me as my mental health has took a nose dive, the 2nd morning was brutal it took about an hour to get out the door and I had sat crying for 20 mins then cried during my run. It then didn’t help getting laughed at by some girl running the opposite way with her mate, it’s the 2nd time this has happened since I started back on the 1st January.
So to all you fit, fast, skinny birds good for you that you look great and are fab runners. Not all of us are like you, yes I’m fat and awkward but I’m having a go and working ridiculously hard to get out the door to run and improve my physical and mental health. So perhaps think twice before giving a snide look and laughing, try and put yourself in my shoes. To the beautiful humans that smile and encourage thank you so very much these small interactions make difficult days brighter.
Still going and still trying to improve my life and mental health 💪🏼🏃🏽‍♀️. #mentalhealth #mentalhealthmatters #mentalhealthawareness #mentalhealthrecovery #ptsd #ptsdawareness #ptsdrecovery #running #runningmotivation #runningtherapy #bekind #thisgirlcanrun #keepgoing #staystrong #positivevibes

Even with the exercise my mental health is still a major battleground. The endorphines are a huge help as none of the many many medications I’ve tried have worked for me, they actually made me feel way worse.
I still have to plan and put things in place so that I can force myself out the door and even then it can all go to pot. So I’m having to respect my limitations whilst trying to push myself as hard as I am able. I was supposed to run yesterday but it took my two hours to force myself out of bed and I couldn’t force myself out that door no matter how hard I tried it was all too much. I though today would be the same as I couldn’t get myself out of my bed and face the world, it took an hour to get me out of the door and I almost turned around and went back home a few times. I truly pushed myself to my limit today mentally and physically every step was hard fought for so I’m really proud to of ran 11.5k running until my legs could go no further and I ran my fastest 10k.
Fighting against PTSD and complex trauma is a beast, one that frequently brings me to my knees but one I keep fighting anyway. #mentalhealth #mentalhealthawareness #mentalhealthmatters #ptsd #ptsdawareness #ptsdrecovery #complextrauma #complextraumarecovery #running #runningmotivation #runningtherapy #10k #thisgirlisonfire #thisgirlcan #thisgirlcanrun

You have no idea just how much I needed this win today, the past few days have been absolutely brutal. My mental health has been on the floor and I’ve been in the darkest place. I got up and I put my make up on (a mask of make up is essential for me when I feel this crap about myself or I won’t get out the door) then went to the river for a morning run. It was a challenging run my brain telling me I’m not good enough in so many ways but I needed the win so I took control and got myself the win. I know this doesn’t fix anything but I needed to remind myself that I am a strong and powerful woman that can fight back, even against my own poor mental health. #mentalhealth #mentalhealthmatters #mentalhealthawareness #ptsd #ptsdawareness #ptsdrecovery #running #runningtherapy #riverrun #win #postivevibes #hope