Mental Health

Here you can read all the articles related to mental health and general wellbeing. You can find here mental health tips and quotes as well as links to professional studies.

A lady behind green leaves, only her eye and a bit of face visible, and the title on the graphic is Who am I now, for Identity loss post on Journeyofsmiley blog

Identity Loss: What if You’re Not Lost, Just Becoming?

Identity loss after grief or trauma can leave you feeling disconnected from who you used to be. It doesn’t happen all at once – it unfolds quietly, in the space between who you were and who you’re becoming. A few days from now, it will be my mum’s 14th heaveniversary. Fourteen years since everything changed. […]

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Running track, four pairs of legs running in lanes, and the title is This isn't the Grief Olympics on Journeyofsmiley blog

The Grief Olympics: How Comparing Pain Keeps Us From Healing

I want to speak directly to you: How often have you found yourself quietly comparing your pain to someone else’s? How often have you thought, “It’s not that bad. Others have it worse”? If that sounds familiar, you’re not alone. This is exactly what people mean by the Grief Olympics – the invisible competition where

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A woman with long hair, standing with her back forward, and the title is When your loss isn't witnessed on Journeyofsmiley

Disenfranchised Grief: What if Your Pain Has a Name?

In a previous post, I wrote about ambiguous loss – a type of loss that lacks closure. The kind that leaves you asking, Is this over? Or am I still waiting? It happens when someone is physically here but psychologically gone. Or physically gone but still deeply present in your mind. But there’s another layer

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A picture of stones piling on each other, and next to it is the title When facing multiple losses on Journeyofsmiley blog

Overwhelmed? What if It’s Cumulative Grief From Multiple Losses

If you’ve recently been feeling emotionally overwhelmed and can’t quite explain why, I want to offer a gentle possibility: could you be experiencing cumulative grief from multiple losses? When loss happens time and again – without enough time, space, or support to fully process each one – grief doesn’t disappear. It accumulates. And over time, that

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Christmas and new year's decorations around a paper in the middle and on that paper is written 'Small Changes, Big Impact' on Journeyofsmiley blog

Small Daily Intentions for the New Year That Make a Big Difference

As we step into a new year, it’s easy to feel pressure to make big plans, set bold goals, and completely reinvent ourselves. Yet over time, I’ve learned that meaningful change rarely comes from dramatic resolutions. Instead, it grows from small, daily intentions. These quieter intentions for the new year – simple, intentional choices we

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Christmas tree brunch decorated with a heart hanging on it, and the title Gentle Guide for Grievers on Journeyofsmiley blog

When Christmas Feels Hard: A Gentle Guide for Grieving Hearts

Christmas can stir up a thousand emotions — gratitude, joy, nostalgia — but also deep sorrow for what has changed. If this Christmas feels quieter, heavier, or lonelier, or if you find Christmas hard when grieving, please know this: you’re not alone. I understand, I’ve been there, too. I remember my first Christmas without my

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A flower buds on the ground and next to it is the title Grief without closure on Journeyofsmiley.com

What if You’re Grieving What’s Still Here? Understanding Ambiguous Loss

“No one warned me that surviving my accident would mean grieving a life that never actually ended, rather an ambiguous loss, lingering quietly beneath the surface.” My traumaversary Today marks my fifth traumaversary – five years since the accident that changed my life in a split second. Five years ago, I was hit by a

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two females watching at a plane flying away in the sky and in the right corner is the title Expat Grief on Journeyofsmiley.com

Expat Grief and Emigration: The Hidden Cost of Moving and Living Abroad

As this month marks twenty years of my life in England, I invite you into a quieter, often unspoken side of the emigration journey – the emotional weight of expat grief that can come with moving and living abroad. This isn’t a checklist of what to pack or how to get visa. Rather, it’s a

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Blue background, on the right side is a blue cup cake with a sparkle, on the left side is written Coping with Birthday Blues on Journeyofsmiley.com

Birthday Blues Are Real: How to Cope With Birthday Depression

As my birthday approached, I couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling growing inside me. Birthday depression crept in slowly at first but then brought with it flood of questions: “Have you done enough?” “Are you where you hoped you’d be?” “What are you even doing with your life?” Have you ever felt sad on your birthday?

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