Life is full of expectations. And I think, for the longest time, I didn’t realize that many of them were not mine. As I am turning 30, I reflect on what I have accomplished so far, and naturally, beat myself up for what I haven’t. That is, until I realized that the expectations that were lacking were not things I ever wanted for myself to begin with.

“The mental health risks people take in being an online personality become more prominent as their popularity grows. There is a lot of pressure to be “on,” be “perfect,” and be everything your audience wants you to be. You feel pressure to give them what you know they want - more content - and the hunger for that content never ends.”

The difference between me accepting my issues in the past versus now is just patience. Every time my mental well being makes a turn for the best, I get to reset my rejoicing, as much as I return to feeling hopeless when I am emotionally attacking myself for what feels like the 1000th time.

Depression: the exact symptoms vary from person to person, but the isolation comes standard. There are plenty of good articles out there about finding solutions for the excessive lows that accompany this mental illness, but this one will be a bit different. I will not tell you what you’re doing wrong, and I will not tell you that you HAVE to do XYZ to feel better.