It’s okay if all you do today is survive.

If you are considering ending your life, do nothing for 24 hours. That is an accomplishment you can build upon. Avoiding an action is an action. 

How many small moments will you have today? Spend a little time outside, or just looking outside from inside. What do you notice? What made you smile, surprised, or captured your attention? What thoughts did you have? Those are the everyday moments that make life interesting. Share them with someone. What did they say? Did they share your feeling? What did they say? Those connections make life a shared experience. 

At this moment, it may be difficult, or even impossible, to see a life that doesn’t look like the one you have. But the experience of life is not constant and situations will change. Some may deteriorate and some may strengthen, but it is certain there will be change. Think of your life before it was how it feels now; maybe that was a year ago, or 5 or 10 years ago, but it was different. You haven’t always felt this badly. You won’t always feel this way, either. But it can take time. That might feel heavy to hear, but compare that other time to this one. Now compare this time to 1, 5, 10 years from now, even if may be difficult to imagine, know that it will be changed. You have to stick it out, get through this rough part to get to that good part again. 

This is a valley surrounded by hills. Keep climbing.

Autumn Hahn is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor and Certified Clinical Hypnotherapist practicing at Clear Mind Group in Florida, Georgia, Nevada, New York, and Virginia. Call 954-612-9553 for a consultation. Follow Autumn on Twitter & Facebook.