Self-Experimentation: Embrace Your Inner Nerd
This is where the term ‘being an N of 1’ comes in. When scientists start an experiment, they require two things; a well-considered hypothesis (what they think will happen on the basis of past evidence) and people to test it on (known as the ‘n’, for number of participants). Being an N of 1 essentially means coming up with a hypothesis that’s personally unique and meaningful for your goals, and testing it properly on yourself. When building a hypothesis, make sure it’s trying to answer something you really want to know and that you genuinely think could benefit you — that way it’s easier to stay motivated and have fun with it.
Relinquishing Control: A Guide For Athletes In The Wake Of COVID-19
Athletes love the cliché “control the controllables”. It offers solid ground in uncertain times like the present pandemic with a clear sentiment: shrink your focus to the things within your sphere of influence. But in our experience, trying to control small things in an attempt to manage the anxiety stemming from a lack of control in the rest of your life can be disastrous. Just because you can control something, doesn’t mean you always should.
COVID-19 and Anxiety Disorders; Unearthing an Unexpected Blessing.
Those of us that have battled and suffered and fought our way through treatment, have more ways to deal with unexpected situations and overwhelming emotions than the average person would ever arm themselves with unnecessarily. So when the world changes in the space of a week, we have a foundation of learning to call upon; from breathing, to meditation, to distress tolerance skills, distraction techniques, and so many reframing strategies that make the rapid pace of change easier to bear. My past and the subsequent treatment has forced me to learn to live in the moment and be okay with not having control over most things in life. I have learnt it's okay to lose my freedom and sense of purpose, have no idea what the future holds, and that there is so much value in pushing forward anyway.
Own your story, but don't resign to it.
The journey from hiding every tear to not at all being ashamed of crying in the most public of places and letting everyone know exactly where I am weakest was not a short one; and it came with its fair amount of detriments and failures along the way. Thinking back, I have been sharing parts of my journey and trying to be 'open' for years, but it is only in the past year or so that sharing has become a holistically healing path. I was first interviewed for an educational TV program back in 2014, and my instagram dates back to before that with what can seem to be openness and truth. Which it was, I hid nothing and was not scared to share the depths of what I was going through, but the motivation for that sharing and the effect it had on me were very different to my motivation and the resulting effects today.