Where ever you are reading this, before you go on: stop for just a minute; put down ur device and take a look around you.
Do you see the lady walking her dogs? The woman driving to work? The teenagers strolling by the road? The man dancing to the song on the radio? The lady having lunch by the cafe? The cheerful, bubbly, all smiles and laughter teen? The strong and good looking people passing by? Take a good look all around you. Even do some soul searching!

They all look okay don't they? They look like the just came out of a magazine cover..they look happy, living their best lives, being the best version of themselves but guess what? Everyone , I repeat everyone has his or her skeletons.
The lady in the latest fashion jacket might be hiding her scars from domestic abuse, the lady asking to see only a female doctor might have undergone sexual violence before, the man who is all smiles might be a moving corpse with an all planned death. The lady who sits idly in the park might be thinking of her kids she lost, the all talkative cheerful bubbly girl might be dying inside from depression and anxiety. The lady walking her dogs might be running away from a hostile atmosphere at home.

There are just too many possibilities. This people might be our brothers , our sisters, children, friends, better half, colleagues, neighbors..just anybody. And guess what? They look , act , talk and behave normally..just like us.
They are all around us, our go to people, the ones who listen to our struggles and help us. They might always say ..I am okay, I am fine, nothings wrong ect. But deep within they die anew with every passing second. They fight and fight till the lose hope and reason to fight.

Our mental health is important and not unnecessary. Let's care for our mental person , be there, grow out of our issues and not avoid them. Talking about mental health isn't unnecessary, bad and should be promoted.  Let no one Shame you for opening up about your mental health. Suicidal tendencies sometimes spring up from pressure, insults, sufferings we can't express because we don't want to be looked down upon or shunned by family and friends.

Sometimes rather than going out, we'd rather stay cooped up in bed,away from others and in out own walls.  Make it a duty to brighten at least one person's day. You know as the saying goes  "One day won't change the world but one conversation could change someone's world".Be that change maker in someone's life. Let them know IT'S OKAY, NOT TO BE OKAY. I got this slogan off a face book page titled IT'S OKAY, NOT TO BE OKAY. Coming across that page is the best thing that happened to me in a while and I am so grateful to Ben's sisters who created the page and use their experience to create awareness and ensure that others don't go through what they went through..#RIPBEN

Some people aren't used to asking for help, because they are too used to being the HELPER . Throughout their lives, they have experienced an unbalanced give and take so their instinct is usually I'll figure it out on my own , the self reliance is all they have ever known. No person or job is worth your mental health. Every morning, wake up and tell yourself I can do this!

I would rather sit with you for as long as it takes and listen to the shit your are going through, than sit there for fifteen minutes listening to your eulogy. You don't need a reason to visit a counselor, open up, share your message, let it all out, it relieves you and lessons your burden. Be a lesson for others, use your experience to empower others, be the change you wish to see, over time learn how to control your inner emotions. 
You will get there someday, keep striving, pushing , moving ahead.
You may not want to exist right now but someone is happy that you do.You are worthy and you are never worthless.  If you are feeling that way right now, reach out! Our minds are dangerous places.

"Your trauma is valid. Even if other people have experienced worse, even if someone else who went through the same experience doesn't feel debilitated by it, even if it could have been avoided, even if it happened long ago,even if no one knows . Your trauma is real and valid and you deserve space to talk about it! It isn't desperate or pathetic or attention seeking. It's self care, it's inconceivably brave. And regardless of the magnitude of your struggle, you're allowed to take care of yourself by processing and unloading some of the pain you carry. You pain matters. Your experience matters. And your healing matters."
                         Daniell Keeplee

If you have the chance to make people happy, just do it. Sometimes people are struggling silently maybe your act of kindness can make their day.

#itsokay,nottobeokay. @facebook.com, #cheerstomentalhealth, #loveyourlife, #shareyourstory,#supportothers, #beyourneighbourskeeper, #itsokay,nottobeokay.

Monday 26th August,
15:35pm, GMT+1
Bamenda, Cameroon.

                                           Lanji❤