Rarely do I see the topics of mental health, work and Money being discussed in relation to each other- I see this as the ‘Elephant in the Room’, as it seems obvious that these areas will all be affected in some way with most mental Health conditions- and it needs some light shed on it.

Anyone who has PTSD will know that some days it can be difficult to function in any way. From the simplest of tasks like getting up for work, to getting dressed in the morning-even these two basic daily tasks can seem overwhelming and almost impossible on a bad day- or when you have been triggered-or experiencing stress, which can lead to a bad week, or month or even a few months.

PTSD effects every area of your life; and sleep and energy levels are majorly disrupted. It almost seems obvious then that Chronic fatigue will follow. Nightmares and insomnia and adrenal fatigue are very common with PTSD; and so trying to get up at 7am or 8am or even 9am when you haven’t slept properly for months is a challenge in itself. We all know how important a good night’s sleep is-so if you can’t sleep, or your quality of sleep is not good and still have to get up at this kind of time then it’s inevitable, you’re going to be feeling groggy, (even like having a hangover), grouchy and not functioning very well.

PTSD effects your pre-frontal cortex of your brain, which is responsible for decision making, reasoning, speech and logic. On a bad day -I cannot make even the simplest of decisions like deciding what to wear in the morning, or doing my groceries- these seemingly simple tasks can send me into complete overwhelm and distress. This may seem over-the-top or even made-up, but PTSD is like having a brain injury-your brain can literally become damaged from stress. So-the way you handle stress is completely different from most people and on a bad day the smallest things can seem impossible, and can send you into complete panic mode.

Speech is also affected with PTSD, and in some cases, or on a really bad day, speech can completely shut down, so that you may even feel like you have lost your vocabulary or forgotten how to speak and you may even forget what you’re saying mid-sentence or not finish your sentence as you simply cannot find the words.

So- can you imagine having to go and work in a stressful work environment on top of this? With rising unemployment over the last decade, work can be very hard to come by and depending on where you live, unemployment can even be severe. So, without a qualification-or in my case- even with a qualification- you are really limited with finding any kind of decent or stable work. I spent more than a decade changing jobs from one bad job to the next- mainly in the hospitality industry-which is mostly seasonal work; meaning work is not available in the months when you need it most-like after Christmas.

Not only is it seasonal-but it’s unsociable, meaning when most other people are enjoying their weekends and evenings, you are going out to work. It is always understaffed, so you are doing the job of 3 other people, often having to skip breaks or barely enough time to grab a bite. The pay is peanuts, so you’re overworked, and underpaid-Nice!! And because you’re understaffed, you are also dealing with a lot of unhappy customers, as people are often left waiting, or you just can’t give the service you would like to in these conditions.

You’re also often having to deal with angry Chefs, who are also overworked and generally stressed out too. So, you’re getting it from all angles-from customers, chefs, and your manager. This is the reality of working in this type of work, and maybe this is why it is now so hard to hire anyone with any experience, as people are just fed up with being paid peanuts to work as a slave and get treated really badly along the way!

This is not OK even for someone who does not have a mental illness. There is no way you can sustain working in this type of environment- it will end up affecting your mental and physical health in a really negative way. I’ve had a few jobs where I would end up with chest pains, or in the lady’s restroom bawling my eyes out, because I just couldn’t deal with the horrible work environment.

This reinforced my feelings of shame and inadequacy, and I literally ended up changing from one bad job to the next, having to take recovery breaks in between jobs. But the really bad part is this- because I was forced back onto Welfare, I would not be able to access or get the proper support that could have helped me to heal. I was literally going around in circles for many years and feeling like a complete failure along the way. But I had so many skills, so many gifts, I had completed several courses, I had tried to start my own craft business, I had tried so hard to make things work, I never sat idle, I wanted to work-but I kept finding myself in this cycle. And because I was still experiencing a lot of trauma in my life from family stress to financial trauma, I was really stuck and unable to move forward in life. I couldn’t think clearly, I knew I had all these gifts, but I had a lot of different areas of passion and interests from writing to healing, to nutrition, and I honestly didn’t really know which path to follow. And because I didn’t really have any stable income- I was constantly stressed about money and debts, and so this would hinder my healing even more.

I was stuck in this vicious cycle-and all I needed was someone to give me some sort of direction and support, and to help me to recover and heal- but all the things that I thought could help me-like life coaching, like EMDR therapy for PTSD, or bio-energy healing therapies for trauma-these all cost quite a bit, and they were never within my reach.

I know that this is happening to so many other people out there, and that you can relate to this.

And that’s why I am now writing my book to help people like you to heal and without it having to take years. I will be sharing years of research and healing tools, of exactly what works and what will help you to balance your mind body and spirit, to balance your whole nervous system, and heal your energy body, so that you can start to think clearly and begin to make the right choices and to find joy and purpose in your life again.

I cannot wait to share this book with you all- the tools that I have learned are vital for healing PTSD-but can be applied for anyone who’s struggling-which let’s face it we all do at some stage of our lives. I have literally spent 100’s of not 1000’s of hours researching and learning all of these tools, and sifting out the stuff that doesn’t work.

So, I’d love to share with you, and be a part of a healing community together.  Sign up now for my newsletter- and stay in the loop for when my book will be available for free-as a gift to help you to heal. I will also be sharing many other healing tools and tips from energy healing to meditations, to nutritional tips and of course my newsletter-which will be focused on healing PTSD, self- empowerment, self-healing and self-realization into your full amazing potentials. Follow me on Instagram, Facebook and You tube too! You don’t have to walk alone. And I promise there is a whole new life waiting for you beyond where you’re at now!