Posted in Events, Mental Health

NAMI-NYC Virtual Expressive Arts Workshop Event: Falling Away

So very excited to announce the NAMI-NYC Expressive Arts workshop event I will be hosting this Saturday! This event will be via Zoom and on the NAMI-NYC website. You can find the link here. Click the Expressive Arts Zoom link for October 26, 2024.

IMPORTANT: This Expressive Arts workshop and the ones following this one are from 2:00 pm – 3:30 pm!

If you have any questions or concerns feel free to send me an email 💟. The time of the event is in Eastern Standard Time.

*I will share any updates or changes and keep everyone posted.

Here are some details for the event:

Title:
Falling Away

Description:
“Falling Away” is a creative, reflective, and fun event where we will draw and write about how we’re doing this fall season. We will begin with an icebreaker, sketching an image and completing the sentence: “I’m learning how to better ______.”

The main activity will then be choosing one of three options:

1. Draw a collection of fall leaves, writing a habit or behavior you want to change, adjust, or improve on each leaf.
2. Write a brain dump journal entry or poem titled “This Year in Review.”
3. Create a word cloud that includes words describing you and how you’re feeling this fall.

We will close by sharing our works of art.

Materials:
Paper, writing utensils (pen, pencil, markers, or crayons).

Schedule
2:00 – 2:20: Introductions and Ice breaker
2:20 – 3:00: Main Activity
3:00 – 3:30: Sharing and Closing

Hope to see you there!

Posted in Keep Moving: Motivation and Inspiration, Love, Mental Health, Self-Care, Self-Talk, Videos

I Shared My Pearls of Wisdom on Taboo Talk Podcast!

I’m excited to share that my friend and fellow NAMI-NYC Ending the Silence and In Our Own Voice co-presenter, Lady Charmaine Day, asked me to be on her podcast, Taboo Talk! In this episode I share my 21 pearls of wisdom on how to live a good life as well as my journey living in recovery. Feel free to check it out here or in the video below!

Posted in Mental Health, Self-Care, The Mighty, The Pencil Case on The Mighty

Pencil Case Prompts: Take This 3-Step Mindful Moment With Me!

Have a second? Take this 3-step mindful moment with me!

When you come across this post, I invite you to take this 3-step mindful moment with me:

Step 1: Pause what you are doing and take three deep breaths. Count for two seconds as you inhale and two seconds as you exhale.

Step 2: Note how your body is feeling and what types of self-care you need to prioritize today.

Step 3: Set one positive intention or goal for the rest of your week.

Note: Feel free to share your notes, reflections, goals, and intentions in the comments below. 💌

Here are my notes and intentions:

Today, I definitely need to prioritize my emotional well-being and take a break from social media. I also want to take myself on a date, especially since I’ve been overthinking and having trouble sleeping.

My intention for the rest of the week is to show myself more love and do something that excites me.


You can also find this post here in The Pencil Case on TheMighty.com.

Posted in Events, Keep Moving: Motivation and Inspiration, Mental Health, Self-Care

NAMI-NYC Virtual Expressive Arts Workshop Event: Shimmers and Glimmers

So very excited to announce the NAMI-NYC Expressive Arts workshop event I will be hosting this Saturday! This event will be via Zoom and on the NAMI-NYC website. You can find the link here. Click the Expressive Arts Zoom link for August 31, 2024.

IMPORTANT: This Expressive Arts workshop and the ones following this one are from 2:00 pm – 3:30 pm!

If you have any questions or concerns feel free to send me an email 💟. The time of the event is in Eastern Standard Time.

*I will share any updates or changes and keep everyone posted.

Here are some details for the event:

Title:
Shimmers and Glimmers

Description:
“Shimmers and Glimmers” is a creative, reflective, and fun event where we will draw, write, and share about positive moments that make us feel calm and secure. We will start with an icebreaker, where we sketch an image and write about three things that have made us smile recently. The main activity will then be choosing one of three options:

1. Draw a night sky full of stars, and in each star write something that brings you a sense of calm, connection, peace, or relief.
2. Write a thank-you letter to the last person, place, thing, or idea that has given you clarity, opened your perspective, or validated your feelings.
3. Create a list poem about activities you can do more often that would be beneficial to you.

We will close by sharing our works of art.

Materials
Paper, writing utensils (pen, pencil, markers, or crayons).

Schedule
2:00 – 2:20: Introductions and Ice breaker
2:20 – 3:00: Main Activity
3:00 – 3:30: Sharing and Closing

Hope to see you there!

Posted in Keep Moving: Motivation and Inspiration, Love, Mental Health, Self-Care, Self-Talk

7 Days of Affirmations: Day 7!

✨It’s our final day of affirmations! ✨

Here is what I’ve come up with for today:

I welcome positive change and transformation into my life. I am equipped to face any challenge that comes my way. I am grateful for what I’m learning and I’m ready to continue on my journey.

Reflection: I did it! I challenged myself to create, write, and reflect every day for 7 days. I’m so proud of myself for keeping at it. I feel a lot better than I did a week ago. I’m ready for what’s next and will keep doing my best 😇.

Posted in Keep Moving: Motivation and Inspiration, Love, Mental Health, Power, Self-Care, Self-Talk

7 Days of Affirmations: Day 6

We’re at day 6! 🎉🪴

Today’s affirmations are as follows:

I am comfortable and confident in who I am. I radiate beauty and each day I choose myself, I become more powerful. I love and accept every part of me.

Reflection: Guess what, sparkly fam!? Someone approached me today and said I was extremely beautiful. That really made my day and inspired my affirmations for today 😁. I’ve made so much progress in loving myself more and now feel good when I receive a compliment from someone. I’m really proud of myself.

Posted in Keep Moving: Motivation and Inspiration, Love, Mental Health, Self-Care, Self-Talk

7 Days of Affirmations: Day 5

Day 5 is here! 🥰

The theme for today is self-care. My affirmations are:

I allow myself to rest and regain my energy. I know how to manage my time effectively. I prioritize self-care because it’s important to me and I deserve to feel good.

Reflection: How I think about self-care is evolving and changing every day. Self-care for me can include being kind to myself, doing something creative regularly, and setting daily personal goals. The more I get to know myself, the better my mind and body feel.

What does self-care look like for you?

Posted in Keep Moving: Motivation and Inspiration, Mental Health, Power, Self-Care, Self-Talk

7 Days of Affirmations: Day 4

It’s day 4 already! 🦋

Here are my affirmations:

I’m capable of achieving the goals I set for myself. My efforts help me to succeed. I embrace my power and believe in myself. I’m focused on what I know I can do.

Reflection: I remember the dreams I have every night. Some of those dreams don’t have much significance, while others I can tell are showing me something important.

A few days ago I had a dream of a silkworm (a first for me despite often having animal symbols in my dreams). The silkworm was following me not too far away. Although I was confused and a bit scared of it, it continued to linger going from its larvae state to flying toward me as a mature moth. Similar to a butterfly, a moth too represents the ongoing cycles of transformation and rebirth.

I’ve been on an ongoing wave of transitions for the past year and it’s taken a lot out of me. The stress and the uncertainty alone has caused my confidence to plummet. I choose right now though, to push forward and use the silkworm from my dream as a guide to not give up on myself or my goals. I may continue to be challenged, but I know my efforts will pay off.

Posted in Keep Moving: Motivation and Inspiration, Love, Mental Health, Self-Care, Self-Talk

7 Days of Affirmations: Day 3

Day 3️⃣ and counting!

Today’s affirmations are about me, money, and wealth. They are:

I am financially wealthy. Money flows to me effortlessly both in expected and unexpected ways. My prosperity is limitless. I am open to receiving all wealth life brings to me.

Reflection: *Takes deep breath*. Unfortunately, I experienced a panic episode today. It’s been a long time since I’ve felt this amount of overwhelm, but I’ll be kind to myself as I gain my energy back. I was sitting in a meeting and remember getting a flood of negative thoughts, especially about money and security. The fear associated with wealth can stop me in my tracks and be challenging to gain confidence around. I want to get a better grasp at manifesting financial and other types of wealth and feel good about my skills, talents, and abilities. I know things will get better for me, I just have to be patient with myself. I’m ready to continue to move forward.