zoella Hello Instagram! It’s #mentalhealthawareness week and if you’re a new follower of mine, you might not know how close to my heart mental health is, and as I now have 11 million followers over here (thank you btw, how effing cool) I thought it was important for me to share a little bit of my journey with mental health in the hope that it might educate, inspire or encourage some of you. I’ve had anxiety & panic attacks through my later teen years right up until today. That’s my entire adult life so far. That’s a long time. Long enough at one point for me to start living my life according to my anxiety and for it to have felt so huge, and to have consumed 99% of every thought of every day (which let me tell you, is exhausting) that I didn’t think there was an alternative. I thought I had to settle and learn to deal with it. Around 2 years ago I decided to start therapy to learn how to manage & work on my anxiety. I do things now that I never thought I’d be doing but it’s been one of the hardest but also most rewarding things I’ve ever done. There were moments when I’d take 10 steps back and think all the hard work had done nothing, but standing back and looking at how far I’ve come now makes me realise how it’s all been worth it. Nothing worth doing comes easy. There will be mountains to climb and rivers to cross but you can do it. The hardest part is starting the journey, especially when you feel so isolated, alone & at a complete loss…but you aren’t alone. Everyone has something they could work on, even that person you know who looks like they have the perfect life, even THEY have something. As humans we always want to look our best. We look after our hair, nails, skin. We eat good food and work out. We spend time and money to feel good, yet not everyone takes that same time and care on the most important thing, our minds. Don’t feel ashamed to speak to someone & don’t settle. Take control of your mental health, don’t let it control you. I wish I’d started sorting out my anxiety years before I actually did, and although I’ll still have moments I struggle with a little more than others, I’m so proud of how far I’ve come, and you can be too!