OCD

I thought that this week I would write about my struggles with OCD. It has been really bad for about the past 3 years or so, though I have always had symptoms even as young as 10 years old. My obsessions and rituals have changed over the years. In elementary school, it was about germs. In middle school, it was about calories and body image. In the past few years it has been crippling perfectionism and all or nothing thinking. Ruminating and intrusive thoughts about sticking to my "life plan" have taken over my life. What has gotten me through so far is relying on the Savior's atonement and telling myself that I am more than just my thoughts. I need to focus less on worldly achievements and more on spiritual. Also, I hope to see a counselor when I am on better health insurance.

Denver Trip

Leanna and I went to visit Katie in Denver this weekend. We left on Thursday and came back today (Sunday). We went shopping, went to the zoo, a wildlife sanctuary, and visited Boulder. It was nice doing a trip with all three of the sisters. We got to meet Katie's boyfriend, John, in Boulder on Friday. He also went to the wildlife sanctuary on Saturday. He was a nice guy and I am happy that Katie has found someone. There was a bit of drama this morning. Our flight was at 6:00 AM. We had to leave Katie's apartment at 2:45 AM to get to the train station to the airport. It felt quite dangerous and a drunk guy yelled at us. I could tell Leanna was a little scared. I also got period cramps and airsick on the flight. We vowed never to take a flight that early again. At least we are now home in one piece and got to catch up on sleep. I start my concurrent enrollment TA job at Lumen tomorrow. I am excited for the political science class. I am unsure of what this job will be but it could not be any worse than Spectrum. I also have a job interview at SLCC on Wednesday to process residency changes for applications. I will update!

Fall Days

We are right in the middle of fall. Today is October 13th. I always loved fall as a kid. I got really excited about the pumpkins and pumpkin flavored treats that came out every year. I loved looking at all the Halloween decorations. I am hoping that this year I can bring some of that excitement back. My mental health has usually been too bad to really focus on anything else. On Thursday, Leanna and I are flying out to Denver to visit Katie and meet her boyfriend. I am way excited to get out of town. I also got the political science TA job at Lumen Scholar Institute. It will be for high school classes but they're concurrent enrollment through UVU. I am hoping it's good experience to get a college job one day. I will update!

General Conference

I was not sure what to journal about this week so I thought I would write about General Conference. I have really enjoyed watching it this weekend. President Nelson has made so many great changes to church programs. I think a big part of his legacy will be how much he expanded the role of women and girls in the church. When I was little, my sisters and I would do Barbie General Conference. I always just thought of it as old white men getting on the TV and speaking to us. I know realize how important it is! The talks really spoke to me this session.