Some of my friends tell me, “You are probably the last person we would think of, when we discuss about ‘self-care’ and ‘mental health’ related issues. Who are you to share all these? When was the last time you took time off to take a break?”
It was true. I was that person, always seen working hard and rarely taking a rest or a short ‘me-time’ break.
Back in 2021, I juggled a number of responsibilities in my life. That included: my full-time work, part-time masters, wedding preparations and a beautiful new house, amid the tumultuous times with COVID-19. I was working so hard, mentally, physically and psychologically. I was always caught up in a vicious cycle.
Deep down, I realized that I am more than my work and responsibilities. I craved for more growth. I started dabbling in designing, content creation and curation. All the time spent being in the busyness of life inspired me to embark on a bilingual self-care reminder project in March 2021.
I started this passion project with the aim to encourage and remind myself to keep going during tough times and overcome challenges ahead. Since then, the account has grown from one follower to more than 1130 followers; I have also received many messages from friends and strangers that I have made a difference in their lives. There’s always something out there which reflects their mood and emotions. They resonated with the words.
Life is a journey of learning new things every day and there’s always something to work on and be better at.
Mental well-being is important. It’s OKAY not to be okay at times. I see this project as my way of giving back to the community, to use words as a source of inspiration, love, reminders and reflections, as well as to rejuvenate lives.