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Have you ever considered what slime on a microphone might sound like? Or enjoyed the sound of someone tapping against a series of gem stones glued to their hands? Nope? How bizzare! Just kidding, that’s the norm. But let me tell you about the many weird and wonderful delights of ASMR (Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response); ASMR videos or audios produce a sensation similar to the feeling of static in your hair, kind of weirdly relaxing and tingly. A sensation that most people can relate to is when you hear something incredibly moving like an awesome singer or an amazing piece of music and it feels as though the hair on your head is standing on end – in a cool rather than scared way.

ASMR is generally made up of ‘triggers’, these are sounds or experiences that ‘trigger’ these sensations in people. Some classics are: tapping, wood, crunchy sounds like sponges, scissors cutting something, paper, hair being stroked or brushed, water, fizzing sounds, certain words/soft speaking and microphone brushing. ASMR videos tend to sit within two categories; these are ‘personal attention’ (so someone giving you a haircut or a facial) or sound/trigger based videos (e.g someone brushing a microphone with different brushes). Most good ASMR ‘Artists’ will combine the sounds and visuals to create something that can be soothing to listen to as well as watch, regardless of which category it sits under.

Personal attention videos are great for people who find the whole concept of watching someone tapping on a load of different objects a bit weird but enjoy a good haircut or spa experience. The ASMR Artist generally used a backdrop (with varying degrees of realism) along with props, sounds and movement to create a roleplay involving you basically chilling out. If you love going to get a haircut but wish you weren’t asked so many questions all the time this is for you! Whilst the ASMR Artist will often be talking softly you can relax in knowing you don’t actually have to give them the lowdown of your recent holiday to Corfu.

Trigger videos are usually more whacky and made up of more sounds so you can expect to be very intrigued whilst also being lulled to sleep. For example did you know the sound of slime being draped across a microphone is the exact fricken same as the sound of the sea!?Whaaat!? who knew right? (See HERE) People are often triggered by certain types of sound, for example i find very crunchy sounds make me tingly. The microphones being used, particularly by well established Artists, are very advanced so really pick up the tiny variations in sound which is what makes it different to listening to a loop of the rain forest. Whilst some sounds are similar to naturally occurring ones you might hear in your day to day life there are plenty that sound pretty unique, such as someone tapping on wood or against a sheet of glitter paper (o yeah things can get weird!). These kind of videos are usually best with earphones in so you can really hear the nuances.

Videos will often be titled to include whether they include talking so if you’re someone who just likes the sounds then you can find videos that are purely sound based but if you like a bit of a mix you can choose a roleplay or video that includes soft speaking and sounds. I find the soft speaking super relaxing but some people find it creepy as hell so depending on whether you have a sleeping partner or you find whispers calming or terrifying will probably be your decider on the talking front.

So how does this relate to mental health? Well firstly the very sensation of ‘tingles’ is seriously relaxing and calming so that alone is a great reason to check ASMR out. Secondly if your someone who struggles with sleep like i do then ASMR is a dream (ha) for creating varied sounds which lull you to sleep but also maintain your attention enough to stop your thoughts wandering and worrying. Personal attention videos are great if you’re feeling anxious as they tend to have more happening visually so you can become pretty engrossed and watch and listen to them, so I use them a lot for if I’m feeling anxious when travelling. For a while I felt self conscious in case someone saw what I was watching but then I came across a meme of a guy watching porn on his commute and figured people are doing weirder stuff.

ASMR has started to become more mainstream and as a result there are a few more kinky people making what is essentially soft porn under the guise of ASMR and i therefore feel it is my moral responsibility to direct you away from that trash and towards some of the good eggs. Some great Artists are:

Gentle Whispering ASMR – Particularly good for roleplays that feel super wholesome. HERE

WhispersRed ASMR – Good for roleplays around spas and pampering, i just wish she was my best friend..or my mother…HERE

Gibi ASMR – A well known Artist who specialises in characters and talking. HERE

ASMRMagic – Fab for sound triggers. HERE

itsblitzzz – A weird one and more of a general youtuber but how I actually discovered ASMR! I used to watch makeup tutorials because i found them so relaxing and then i found this woman and the rest is ASMR history! HERE.

Finally this guy, asmr zeitgeist is a curveball but creates awesome visuals by making his mics into characters! I can’t possibly not give him a shout out seeing as i’m currently listening to his ‘ASMR Barbershop Tingles for Sleep’ as I write this, you can view it HERE

Enjoy and goodnight! 🙂

Very privileged to have had my blog post on getting a diagnosis shared by Bipolar UK. Bipolar UK is a fantastic platform for blogs, helpful information and support systems. If your more of a social media kinda person you can also follow them on Facebook (and probably all the others I just refuse to take on any more social media than absolutely necessary!). Pretty cool and definitely check them out HERE!

I recently shared an interesting video around scars in the summer on my Facebook page which reminded me that due to the easy shareability of Facebook there are often really interesting videos, articles and infographics (love an infographic) that I find and share on my Facebook page but don’t tend to post over here. It’s also become more of a group than a blog so I encourage people to share their experiences too and comment on posts, if you’d like to join me over on my Facebook page just send a request over to https://www.facebook.com/groups/275143122675460/ or simply search P.S Bipolar and join the team!

Some people aren’t aware of this, another option is ‘died by’, this replaces the judgement with the acknowledgement that suicide is complex and the person suffered from something. It’s hard for someone people to understand the distinction but the best example I can give is that we would not say a smoker committed suicide when their smoking related lung cancer ended their life, we would say they died of lung cancer. In a way this separation is similar with suicide, the death was a result of a symptom and it’s important to acknowledge the symptom in order to remove some of the judgement, disdain and anger people have around suicide.

I’ve been thinking a lot recently about self-care, that’s right, the millennial, snowflake obsession with self indulgence. Or not. It still baffles me that millennials seem to have taken a hit for what is essentially 1. wanting all people to feel included, represented and safe to live their lives and 2. prioritising good mental health practises and looking after their wellbeing. Self care is hugely important for this generation where we pay extortionate amounts of rent (i calculated I’ve spent £56,000 in 7 years which makes me feel a tad nauseous) and will probably still be working as we crawl onto our deathbed. If we are going to spend most of our lives working (and lets face it if you’re in healthcare or the charity sector you probably will) then at the bare minimum we should be investing in our mental health if we can’t invest in a home.

Self care is often viewed as a luxury but really it’s just common sense, that’s not to say everyone has regular time to do so but it should still be a priority. From a selfish perspective it allows us to recharge and feel calm and grounded but even altruistically self care allows us to be present and engaged with those around us. Self care is also about insight and the ability to reflect and vocalise your needs. Last week was ridiculously busy, i did long hours at work to make up some time i was having off and then a heavy bout of socialising; all nice things but pretty full on, particularly for someone who lives alone. These days i really notice that i feel pretty stressed out when i don’t have the option of having down time on my own, it leaves me feeling a bit claustrophobic and anxious. I also find bitty days and being busy in lots of areas difficult, last Wednesday i had an important meeting all day and then a 30 minute gap to rush to a hospital appointment where i manged to lose myself in a maze of corridors leading me to promptly burst into tears on arrival. Luckily for me it was therapy which is the best type of appointment to arrive to if you’re going to start crying when you get through the door. Over the weekend i spent 6 hours travelling and when i arrived home on sunday was straight out the door to a choir rehearsal which took place at work and required me to get in my polite, being in public headspace.

On Monday i attempted to cram in an early doctors appointment before work where they refused to give me my medication based on an inaccuracy in a letter sent over by my psychiatrist and again i burst into tears. This is a lot of crying for a 7 day period so i figured i probably needed time out, i had lunch on my own at work which because i was anti social and frazzled when i first began working there has just become a norm and people leave me to it. In the evening i had planned to run but instead closed the curtains, got in comfy clothes and watched back to back love island (love it or hate it it’s good escapism). This might not be the luxurious bubble bath with a glass of wine that’s used to depict self care but sometimes self care is just about recognising when you need a breather. Having spent two nights having anti social evenings where the most i achieved was making a chilli before i crashed on the sofa i now feel significantly better.

This downtime not only means i’m not on the brink of tears at any given moment but it means i feel clearer headed at work and more present. It’s not just about recognising for myself when i need time out but it’s also about acknowledging that those around me need time out too and it’s ok for them to vocalise that. One of my best friends and i send regular voice notes on whatsapp which have become part of my morning ritual on the bus to work, this recently amped up after a break up where i struggled to not sob through my journey and she therefore felt obliged to distract me for the duration of my commute. Now i’m out of the ‘i literally feel so awful i cannot possibly be left in my own company’ and am more ‘i feel sad but have accepted this situation’ the voice notes have lessened which is probably more healthy. With my ridiculously over socialised week i paused all communication and sent her a voice note yesterday explaining what i’d been up to and that i felt totally fried. She in return texted me (literally unheard of) to explain she also felt fried and wanted to pause our daily voice notes and swap to a weekly chat that didn’t feel so overwhelming. Good self care people!

All of this has encouraged me to reflect on firstly how self aware i am these days that i am able to mentally check into my needs so easily and secondly that this is a universal issue, not a Bipolar one. Bring on the millennial self indulgence!

Some things i consider to be good self care:

1. Time away from people when needed
2. Listening to ASMR (google it people, you’ll either find it weird and creepy as hell or amazing)
3. Speaking to my Manager about working out of the office when i feel overwhelmed
4. Reading and turning off all electronics
5. Doing my gratitude journal in the evening
6. Not staring at my phone until the brink of sleep but reading and meditating
7. Meditating, even if i’m rubbish at it
8. Going for a walk and being in nature, i hate town
9. Catching up with friends – yup sometimes i do actually want to engage rather than retreat
10. exercising – reasonable amounts though people, lets not go overboard

So I’ve been working on some paintings as part of a series on my Bipolar, I wanted to convey that firstly the moods could be separated to a minimum of 5 categories and secondly that there is a lot of nuance within these moods. For example whilst ‘Mania’ is bright and colourful and exciting it is also very chaotic with an inability to focus, hence lots of bright colours and punchy patterns. For ‘Anxiety’ I wanted a sense of sharp objects and darker colours but also some elements of beauty because although I fricken hate anxiety I also acknowledge that it allows me to be more compassionate and understanding of others with similar experiences. I’ve also continued a gold theme throughout to indicate that although some of these feelings are uncomfortable and I have mixed emotions around them they are also a part of me and what makes me wonderfully unique!

From the 1st-7th June is National Volunteers Week and as a Voluntary Services Manager this is a big deal on a professional level but for me it’s also a personal one too. It’s a moment for me to acknowledge how far I’ve come; it’s easy when work is hectic and my love life is a mess to lose sight of what I have achieved in the past year and a half but as I was giving a speech to a hundred volunteers it made me realise that I have totally smashed it.

In my speech I shared that I had started out in Voluntary Services at the recommendation of my CPN (Community Psychiatric Nurse) who essentially was like ‘you kind of need to be doing something with all this free time…’. He was totally right, my hair was hacked off from a manic moment of stupidity, I’d gained tons of weight which I was very self conscious of and my confidence was so low I hated going to the shop for milk. I could barely look people in the eye (unless I was manic in which case I was looking people in the eye waaay too much) and that just wasn’t me. As you may have noticed I’m pretty open and chatty and all of a sudden I was this meek, terrified shell of a person. I applied to volunteer and when the Manager eventually got back to me I noted she clearly had a high workload and might need a hand. Because I’m drawn to highlighters, stationary and a spreadsheet, supporting with admin seemed like a good start. The Manager talked me down from my first instinct which was to fill every single day of the week with volunteering and we settled on a few hours a week of admin for Voluntary Services.

Since graduating I’d been completely frustrated by my inability to do anything, finishing my final year of University whilst in a psychiatric Day Hospital had been a push and I remember sobbing over the fact I could barely retain a sentence let alone write a paragraph. I’d always been pretty academic and I had already pushed through a difficult period when my boyfriend at the time had become unwell in my second year of University, I was determined not to fail at the final hurdle but it was a huge struggle. When I eventually graduated I’d given myself 6 months to get on top of my mental health and then I’d start work, my friends will tell you I love a good (and often unreasonable) deadline. My CPN did a kind of mumbled ‘that seems unlikely, you may need to readjust your expectations…’ which I ignored. When the 6 months was up I applied for jobs and got interviews but was so terrified at the prospect of being expected to literally turn up every day or be fired that I didn’t make most of them. I was still hugely struggling with my insomnia, self harm and suicidal ideations that it seemed absurd that I should manage that as well as a job, it was a job in itself.

Like my CPN said my expectation was way off and 6 months ended up being about 6 years, disappointing but he was also right about something else, volunteering was life saving for me. Volunteering allowed me to build my confidence and get comfortable with my skills again without the pressure of being paid. I was expected to come in but I wasn’t obligated to and that felt far safer and relaxed than paid work. If I slept terribly we just changed the day I was due in and if my seizures were bad or my stomach issues weren’t great I just came in later in the day to accommodate that. The flexibility allowed me to become more consistent because I didn’t feel any pressure from anyone I volunteered with. Both Managers I had during this time supported me fully and kept me in check, if I was a little high (which by the way meant I was pretty efficient and an absolute filing machine) then they simply kept tabs to make sure things were ok.

Eventually I built this up into part time hours and then after a few years became paid as an Administrator. Since then I’ve been a Voluntary Services Recruitment and Training Coordinator (worlds longest title), a Voluntary Services Coordinator and now a Manager. I feel so passionate about volunteering because I’ve seen the reciprocal benefits first hand. Of course volunteering is about giving back and creating meaning for those you support but it’s a two way street. Volunteering also allows us as an organisation to engage with our community, form connections between volunteers, reduce loneliness and isolation and support people with building their confidence and skills. Volunteers are integral to the running of organisations, particularly charities and smaller companies which are so reliant on the generosity of local supporters.

As I looked around during my speech on Sunday I saw so many smiling and reassuring faces, volunteers that I get to spend time with daily, weekly, monthly and even once a year, but all amazing people that I truly consider part of my team. It made me realise how hard it is to share our stories and life experiences in setting which aren’t mental health orientated, even if they are mental health supportive. In the past I’ve been happy to share my story but in my new job I’ve worried about how people will perceive me and my competency. Sharing my story to a room full of people who weren’t involved in mental health was daunting but the response I had afterwards reconfirmed my belief that we all share a common humanity. The number of people that shared their own stories with me afterwards was amazing and reminded me that we all have life experiences which shape our personalities and intentions in the world. It’s easy as a member of staff to feel you need to put on a front in order to seem capable but the reality is that by sharing your truest self you open yourself to connecting with people on a meaningful level.

For National Volunteers Week I take a moment to acknowledge the hard work I have put in to building my career but also the amazing volunteers I get to support every day and that support so many fantastic charities and organisations in my local area. For anyone that is considering volunteering I’d highly recommend using the Do-it site (No it’s not a Nike website, that would be an odd thing to recommend), It’s a great resource for finding volunteering opportunities in your area, click HERE for more information.

Please do feel free to share as I’d love the world to be volunteering but I’ll settle for encouraging the smaller number of people within my network!

As many of you will know this week is mental health awareness week. I’ve been pondering on what to say and came across the below whilst stumbling through my hard drive last night looking for my CV. The below letter was written to be submitted to the ‘Recovery letters’, part of a collection of letters written by those who have had mental health issues to those currently suffering. All start with ‘Dear you’. It seems well timed not only for this week generally but for me personally at the moment to remind myself that whatever is going on for me i showed up when it was hardest to and i continue to show up every day and i should be very proud of the work I’ve done to do that.

For more information on the Recovery Letters you can check out the website on: http://therecoveryletters.com/how-it-all-started

‘Dear you,

You will most likely have already been told on numerous occasions that ‘it will pass’, it will ‘get better’ or that ‘you will survive this’. If you’re anything like me you’ll find these kind of platitudes annoying, you’ll think ‘don’t tell me i’ll get through it, how can you possibly know that?’. You may, like me, find these phrases condescending, like your grief is something to wade through until you reach a definitive end point, the holy grail of sanity and insight that could only be obtained through mental torture. You may already know that the likelihood is that you will get better, you’ve probably seen the posters of celebrities sharing their stories and notifications bursting onto your newsfeed of people who have been and conquered depression. You may know it, but you may not feel it. We talk about ‘fighting’ depression but in doing so we lose sight of how well armed our opponent is, how well equipped our nemesis stands with our inner thoughts of self loathing and anger. Depression is fluent in your Achilles heel and will twist your own words until they boomerang back to you, battered and bitter and bruised.

So give up the fight, not forever, but for a moment. Depression is exhausting and twisted and it’s ok to say ‘today i don’t want to fight, today i want to stay in bed, or pace the floors, i want to cry and get mad, i want to feel frustrated and defeated, to feel seething and consumed, today i am going to sit with and accept that i feel this way’. It’s not defeat but a very brief truce. Fighting is hard work; it’s keeping calm, trying to do dishes, trying to distract yourself, taking a walk, taking a nap, taking a pill, eating something healthy, eating something. It’s trying to go to bed on time but not too early you can’t sleep, it’s having a bath but not for so long you’re lost in a puddle of your thoughts, it’s mindfulness without too much mind on the fullness in your head. It’s exhausting. So today you can pause the internal monologue and just accept where you are. It feels awful and it’s ok to acknowledge that, you can set aside the pep talks and motivational speeches for today and simply be. You can know that one day it will feel better but right now it doesn’t and that’s frustrating and unfair.

At the same time however, take a moment to acknowledge the fact that you showed up for the day, it could be in the pyjamas that you haven’t washed for weeks with your hair in a mess and fire under your skin but you showed up nonetheless. People may tell you to wash your clothes, clean your hair or meditate but they may not realise you opened your eyes this morning and are still here this afternoon and that’s amazing. You know it will get better but today you are still on your journey and you are learning and growing and whilst it may not feel like it that is succeeding. Don’t berate yourself for things you aren’t doing, the wellness app you didn’t download or the walk you didn’t take. Acknowledge and marvel at the most courageous thing you did today, you stayed.

Good luck