anna spargo-ryanNov 13, 2022
anna spargo-ryan

I used to imagine I carried, deep inside, a better version of me. This “real” Anna would be able to do everything I couldn’t. She would fearlessly travel to far-flung countries and get deliberately lost in strange places. She would sky-dive and swim with sharks. She would boldly meet new people and know how to have a conversation with them.

...

If I could just find and release her, my life would change. I would be cured.

https://www.theage.com.au/lifestyle/life-and-relationships/i-ve-spent-my-life-looking-for-a-cure-to-mental-illness-then-i-made-a-discovery-20221025-p5bslq.html

I’ve spent my life looking for a cure to mental illness, then I made a discovery

In the hunt for my ‘better’ self, I realised I was missing the version that was already here.

The Age
Nov 13, 2022 at 7:04amWeb
Show threadThe Drop Bear 2.0 Nov 13, 2022
@annaspargoryan I sometimes say to my friends “I wish you could see yourself the same way I see you” and I say the same to you.
Show threadanna spargo-ryanNov 13, 2022
@dropbear xx
Show threadAshlee of JupiterNov 13, 2022
@annaspargoryan Wow. I can relate to your experience so strongly. Thanks for writing this ❤️
Show threadanna spargo-ryanNov 13, 2022
@ashleeofjupiter Thank you so much for reading it!
Show threadMike FunnellNov 13, 2022

@annaspargoryan

“Eventually, I could no longer imagine a real Anna. There was nowhere left for her to be.”

Well: I don’t know that supposed “real Anna” since I’ve not met you and we’re unlikely to meet. But I do know “online Anna” and “what Anna writes” and I can assure you that those Annas are quite wonderful.

One or ‘tother of those can write:

“In making us hunt for these magical inner selves, you’re missing the one who’s already here. The valuable, whole, complete, vital person. There’s no one else waiting to emerge, and it’s time for the world to stop asking them to.”

…which is both delightful and thoughtful.

👏👏👏👏👏

Show threadanna spargo-ryanNov 13, 2022
@FunnellMike Oh this is so kind, Mike, thank you
Show threadyung thrillhouseNov 13, 2022
@annaspargoryan this was a wonderful article and I’m excited to read your book
Show threadanna spargo-ryanNov 13, 2022
@pantsahoy Thank you so much! I really hope you like the book (it's a lot more of this but with more swears I guess)
Show threadnickNov 13, 2022

I thought I could never leave #twitter because I'd miss out on the wise words of @annaspargoryan and it turns out she's already here, way before I was!

(do read this, it's really good)

Show threadSpliceFixer   Nov 13, 2022
@annaspargoryan That better you exists. You just have to learn to let her drive.
Show threadanna spargo-ryanNov 13, 2022
@SpliceFixer There's no "better" me – there's just me. My job is to love her.
Show threadTroppoInNQNov 14, 2022

@annaspargoryan I've long wondered if my anxiety was more nature or nurture - or more likely both - they certainly work together really well to cripple me at times. The other dilemma is do I over think things or do I just think things over? And does having a contemplative mindset make me empathetic or just depressed - or both?

In all seriousness, it seems the only answer to this has been maturity. Understanding how I fit into all this and how I control my thoughts. I wish that process could happen quicker but, for me, it seems only lived experience informs my thoughts on this. Which is probably a silly way to approach this. Maybe we just need acceptance that some of us live in our heads more and maybe that's not such a bad thing ... acceptance matters.

Show threadJo A Nov 15, 2022
@annaspargoryan Love this. It's so bloody liberating to let go of an idealised impossible future self and make room to see, inhabit, and appreciate the actual person you are.
Show threadanna spargo-ryanNov 15, 2022
@inertia_crepes Exactly that! Thank you