May is mental health awareness month.
Mental health is the health we prioritize at TRILUNA because it's the health at the center of it all. Without mental health we cannot prioritize ourselves, our movement practice, or our habits. It all starts with mental well-being. As a culture, we've had a pick-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps, toxic positivity approach to mental health for too long. We have moralized mental toughness without ever offering resources for understanding our brains and our chemistry. We have suggested that we are one green juice away from health. We've been told to toughen up, be professional and not show emotion, or just deal with it. But TRILUNA wants to turn that on its head.
Let's be clear though, we are not therapists or counselors. In this space, we are students and fellow humans. But we have also done a lot of personal work in this space so we are going to offer you some resources.
We understand that not everyone is comfortable with therapy and that there are people who think therapy isn't for them. We also understand that therapy has a lot of work to do in decolonizing itself. For more there check out Dr. Han Ren (we lover her IG account @dr.han.ren). There is a way to care for your mental health at every level of interactivity and price. If you're new to this space and would rather just start by exploring on your own you might start with CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy) which helps identify and change underlying thought patterns. As part of her mental hygiene routine, Elizabeth uses an app called Bloom.
One of our primary goals at TRILUNA is to be vulnerable and transparent about our own struggles with mental health and to share what has worked for us (and what hasn't). We hope that as a result of our work more people feel comfortable seeking help with their mental health. There is absolutely no shame in seeking out therapy. You do not need to be in emergency mode to go to therapy. Couples counseling doesn't mean your relationship is bad or wrong or doomed to fail. Needing therapy doesn’t make you weak. You can find a therapist that fits your needs (finding the right fit is critical and it may take you a few times before you land with the right one). You can have a faith-based therapist or one that is not. You can do telehealth or go in person. You can have therapy that's focused on: family, LGBTQIA, sex, race, trauma, eating disorders and body image, and/or relationships. You get to set the terms of your work.
Prioritizing your mental health is a gift you give yourself. It's a gift you give the world. You don't have to put on a brave face every day to get through it. You are not alone.
Some mental health resources we really love:
Traditional Therapy -
The Gaia Center For Embodied Healing
BetterHelp (telehealth)
Cerebral (telehealth that can prescribe medications)
If you're looking for therapy in your area and worried about cost try searching "sliding scale therapy."
If you're looking for a therapist be very clear about what you want. You can get specific, "I want a Black, faith-based therapist that identifies as a woman."
There are many types of therapy so you can investigate which works best for you. There are five primary types and many different ways those types are executed against*:
Psychoanalysis and psychodynamic therapies
Behavioral therapy
Cognitive therapy
Humanistic therapy
Integrative or holistic therapy