I'll admit, the stress really got to me this month. With the holidays, and the pressure I put on myself to write, and issues with my children, it suddenly became too much. I had a depressive episode stronger than I've had in a long time. Thankfully, I have a handle on my occasional depression and I know what steps I need to take to pull myself out.
This time, that step was a step back. Away from writing, away from my own expectations, away from the stressors I could safely disentangle myself from. I spent nearly two weeks away from my laptop and felt not a single drop of guilt over doing so. And let me tell you, it was exactly what I needed.
I read a lot. I watched movies with my kids. I threw myself into celebrating Christmas with my family. I felt such a weight lifted now that I was finally out from under the pressure to spend every spare moment writing and hit a certain word count by the end of the year. It felt good.
I'm ready to get back into it now, though maybe with a little less intensity. I'll keep plugging away while making my mental health a higher priority than I have been. After all, Mortals & Shadows Book 2 isn't going to write itself.
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