When I go to WordPress.com, a page called the Reader page comes up, on it are all the posts of all the blogs that I subscribe to, they alternate. This includes my own blog. When one of my posts is on the Reader page, it is SOO cool. I created that post! Before I put the words down, it did not exist. That is just an amazing concept: I am a creator. I put my pen to paper (so to speak) and create a story or a poem or a post that didn’t exist until I gave it existence. Very powerful! I can create. I have the choice to create positive or negative things. Most of the time I choose, I try to choose positivity. Sometimes the negativity sneaks in. Those posts, be they all positive or not all positive, are like my babies haha. I chose each word carefully when I write. I try to make my meaning crystal clear, no ambiguity, I think that comes from the scientist in me. Writing this blog is a joy much of the time. The very first few posts, from August 2014, helped me get all the suffering and pain and shell shock out of my system. Then I started writing descriptive, hopefully helpful blog posts. Then in the last couple of weeks, I felt like I didn’t have much more to say, but now words are spilling out again as fast as I can type them. I will make this blog about positivity, compassion and information. That is my intent. And I’m sure I’ll be thrilled every time I see one of my posts featured in the Reader, my heart will skip a beat, in a happy way.

Compassion, it is when you see someone suffering and you feel for them. When you feel the pain of others, so to speak. Is it only for others? Can you have compassion for yourself? Can you have compassion for little critters? Can you have compassion even for trees? The answer is yes, yes, and yes. I am 54 years old, will be 55 in June. It’s taken me a long time to apply compassion to myself. I have been self critical, self abnegating, judgmental, denying, and generally self hating and angry. Of course I can be compassionate when I see others suffering. Of course I can feel their pain and want to help. Of course I love animals and feel very compassionate towards them, especially my kitty who will be 20 in June 🙂

This is what Eckhart Tolle, in whose books I am so interested, says about Compassion: “Yes.  Compassion is the awareness of a deep bond between yourself and all creatures.  But there are two sides to compassion, two sides to this bond.  On the one hand, since you are still here as a physical body, you share the vulnerability and mortality of your physical form with every other human and with every living being.  Next time you say “I have nothing in  common with this person,” remember that you have a great deal in common: A few years from now — two years or seventy years, it doesn’t make much difference– both of you will have become rotting corpses, then piles of dust, then nothing at all.  This is a sobering and humbling realization that leaves little room for pride.  Is this a negative thought? No, it is a fact.  Why close your eyes to it? In that sense, there is total equality between you and every other creature.”

It’s almost February 20th, the day to fill the blogosphere with Compassion. Write posts about it and post them, you don’t have to have a blog, go to the link below on their Facebook page and write and post. Even though I don’t know exactly what I am going to say, I can’t wait to start writing about Compassion.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/306227992909657/318518781680578/?comment_id=318634761668980&notif_t=group_comment_follow

Wow, I am so happy that Kate Middleton, yes of the British royalty fame, is advocating for children getting help for mental illnesses just as they would for a physical illness. She is also all for the loss of stigma that is often attached to having a mental illness, saying if someone breaks their arm, they would see a doctor, so why not for a mental illness. When people in the limelight speak up for these issues, the world is more likely to listen, so I applaud her for this.

http://www.eonline.com/news/625914/kate-middleton-shows-her-support-for-children-struggling-with-mental-health-it-s-okay-to-ask-for-help

As a mother, Kate Middleton really knows how important a healthy childhood can be.

Unfortunately, too many kids are faced with anxiety, depression or other mental health struggles while growing up.

In honor of the U.K.’s first Children’s Mental Health Week, the Duchess of Cambridge is speaking out for a cause she believes every human should care about. The message is nothing short of powerful and profound.

“The challenges children face in the U.K. today could often feel overwhelming. BothPrince William and I have seen that many young people are struggling to cope with the impact of bullying, domestic violence, family breakdowns and more,” she shared. “Without support, the effects of these challenges can be traumatic leading to serious issues such as anxiety, depression, addiction and self-harm.”

So what is there to do? It’s time to finally start talking about mental health.

“We need to help young people and their parents understand that it’s not a sign of weakness to ask for help,” Prince George‘s mom proclaimed. “A child’s mental health is just as important as their physical health and deserves the same quality of support.”

The 33-year-old mom also brought up an excellent question that could get a lot of parents thinking.

You wouldn’t feel bad about getting your child help for a broken arm. So why would you feel bad about getting your son or daughter help with emotional difficulties?

“The sigma about mental health means many children do not get the help they so badly need. This needs to change,” the Royal Patron of Place2Be concluded. “Together, with open conversations and greater understanding, we can ensure that attitudes towards mental health change and children receive the support they deserve.”

It’s very strange, you have a blog. You pour out your soul into it. You write almost everyday. You post your writing. Sometimes it actually helps to unburden yourself and you really feel lighter. Sometimes, it just unsettles the murky sands of your mind and it becomes more difficult to see clearly, no, no clear vision after some posts. No clairvoyance. But the strange thing is that you have really no control over who reads your blog or how many people read your blog.

There is a statistics page. It shows how many visitors your blog has had and how many of your posts were viewed and from what country the viewers came. For example it says 3 visitors. 3 views. And it says which posts got how many views. Picture below.

And that is all it tells you. You don’t know if the viewers actually read your whole post, or if they liked it, or if they’ll be coming back. So you live in uncertainty… sort of like life… haha.

Of course, some of my viewers always comment and leave such wonderful comments that it literally warm my heart.

Ah well, a foray into the world of blogging. Fun, educational, and just like life. Onwards ho!

http://www.ctvnews.ca/health/health-headlines/probiotics-may-hold-key-to-improving-mental-health-1.2212893

Probiotics, the healthy bacteria that live in our guts may be the key to treating mental illness!! In one study, when mice were stripped of their good, healthy bacteria, they developed anxiety and depression. When they were again given probiotics back, their mood became normal, as chemicals that reduce depression and anxiety flooded their brain. These findings show that is possible to simply feed a bacterium to mice and actually change the chemistry in their brain.
“In the first study of its kind, Canadian researchers are investigating whether probiotics, the good stomach bacteria that aid digestion, regulate the immune system and reduce inflammation, may in fact be a treatment for those with bipolar disorder.”
Dr. Valerie Taylor at the Women’s College Hospital in Toronto is doing a study in which she is giving probiotics to people with mental illness. She hopes to find out whether probiotics can have a similar effect in people. And if they do, then taking an over the counter pill is good bacteria will be able to help millions of people with mood disorders and other mental illnesses.

I just happened to come upon a blog called “Mental Illness – Do You Know?” and saw my CLINT MALARCHUK interview (my original post: https://bipolar1blog.wordpress.com/2014/12/24/clint-malarchuk-interview-by-samina-raza/) posted on it (link below)! I am tickled absolutely pink! Ah the wonders of the internet!!!

http://mentalillness-doyouknow.com/clint-malarchuk-interview/

And then just out of curiosity I googled it and found many sites that have posted my interview! See here: https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=samina%20raza%20clint%20malarchuk%20interview