Mental Health, Let’s talk about it.

An uncomfortable subject for many, but believe it or not, totally applicable to what I do as a housekeeper. Not talking about it, ignoring it, will only make things worse. Trust me, I know. I have dealt with my depression/anxiety/panic disorder since I was a teenager (at least). Let me talk to you about how it manifests, at least for me.

When I am depressed, I eat more. I sleep more. I feel pain, usually dull aches, physically. I zone out. Sometimes, when it is really a bad bout of it, I feel numb and apathetic. I get stuck in the glue trap of negativity.

My anxiety and panic is unpredictable, and I hate that. It can cause me nausea, stomach pain, headaches, sweatiness, fast heartbeat, and make me feel hot. Sometimes, even upsets my stomach. I cancel on people a lot when I am anxious, which makes me more anxious. I take criticism, even if it is good-natured and constructive, to heart, because I want perfection.

Everyone’s experience with mental illness is different. I share my experience because: 1) you are not alone, 2) this is why I am the way I am, 3) I want you to know that I understand and will NOT judge you. When you feel like crap, you don’t want to clean your house, and that is a fact. If your home is messy and/or dirty, trust me when I say that I have seen it all and I don’t care. Just let me get to work.

You don’t have to explain yourself to me. Stuff happens–life, physical or developmental disability, age, kids, pets, mental illness, or just being plain busy. I care about YOU, but I don’t have to know the reason for a messy/dirty house, because it doesn’t matter. I have worked with so many wonderful clients, some of which have told me that they suffer from mental illnesses as I do. I tell them all the same thing: the dirtiest/messiest house that I have ever cleaned is and will always be MY OWN home. Just because I clean houses for a living, doesn’t mean my house wouldn’t make the average warthog a happy camper.

The point of this post is that it is ok to not be ok, just let me take one thing off of your plate and your mind. Sending love, Liz.