When I was young, I used to do these things that I actually still do.

They're actually compulsions because when I get obsessed with something that bothers me,

I will start to count.

So I'll count to five.

I'll count by twos because, again, makes no sense.

But when I was a kid, even numbers are to be trusted,

odd numbers are not.

There's a little figure I actually draw in my mind

that I started drawing when I was like five.

I can't really describe it, but when I get kind of anxious and triggered,

that's what I kind of do, like over and over again. I didn't really

think a lot about it until I noticed myself doing it again. Really when this pandemic started,

I noticed that I started counting by fives again. And it kind of bothered me, not kind of,

it actually did bother me. It really kind of set off an alert in my mind,

like, okay, what's going on? Like, why do you feel this way? The compulsions and the compulsive

behavior, I mean, it does kind of help me to cope with my anxiety at the time. But at the end

of the day, my compulsive behaviors didn't make me feel very good. But it did make me stop and think about how I really did want to start coping with my anxiety.

I just want to drop it hello.

Taking care of our minds is just as important as taking care of our bodies.

But how do you even start that journey?

Think of a mindy state of mind as your beacon of sanity on your path to getting your mind right.

We're in this together, y'all.

...