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Achieving While Struggling with Mental Health
Embracing Ambition While Navigating The Ups and Downs of Struggling with Mental Health.
Feeling Like Your Stuck
Have you ever felt like you wanted to achieve more but just felt stuck because you struggle with mental health? Maybe you feel like you can never finish anything before falling back into depression? If I were to give my younger self one piece of advice, it would be this. You can both strive for achievement while also living with mental health struggles like depression, anxiety, or ADHD. The ups and downs that come with dealing with mental health are part of your process, but that doesn’t mean you can’t achieve all that you dream of. You can achieve success and your desires and learn to live with your struggles.
Trusting the Highs and Letting Go of the Lows
Perhaps the biggest lesson that I would want to tell my younger, dreamer, self would be to observe the highs and lows. The ambition, creativity, and optimism, along with the self-doubt, lack of worth, and sadness, can both coexist. It comes with dealing with your mental health, but you can learn to achieve in spite of this.
I would always get excited about an idea or dream when I was feeling good, but then fall into a lower, depressive mood and think that whatever I thought before must not have been real. I would always believe what the lower version of myself told me. But you can trust the highs instead, and know that the lows are not the truth. Know that the lows are lying to you. This switch in perspective has really allowed me to work with depression and not let it hold me back. You don’t need to trust what your brain tells you when you’re down, you can let it go and wait for inspiration to come again. Because it will.
4 Ways to Achieve Through Mental Health Struggles
Here are some ways that I’ve found helpful to move through and work with my depression and anxiety to achieve my goals, start finishing things, and be the person that I want to be.
1.Finding Your Own Path to Achievement
One of the most important ideas I would share with younger Gino is that achievement isn’t “one size fits all.” Driven by social norms and internet gurus promoting nonstop hustle, many ambitious people feel pressured to match routines that don’t suit their unique mental health needs. It’s important to emphasize that forcing yourself to “grind” every day, especially when coping with depression or anxiety, can not be helpful. Instead, it’s essential to define your own version of success, and routine, one that accounts for the natural ebbs and flows of your feelings.
I’ve found I work best in bursts, and when I’m feeling low, I need to take time to tend to how I’m feeling. That’s not only okay, it’s sustainable. Your achievement must be measured by your own standards, not by others’.
2. Listening to Yourself: The Power of Intuition
External advice can be helpful, but for those wrestling with mental health, it doesn’t always fit. I’ve had too many times where I’ve ignored my own voice and intuition, and followed the recommendations of friends, colleagues, or even societal expectations. I found more success and peace, when I started tuning into my emotions and listening to myself. That means noticing what works for your body, your mind, and your schedule, and not being afraid to adjust based on those needs.
Taking advice is still valuable, but adapting it to your life is crucial. Start with yourself, and let outside perspectives supplement, not override, your lived experience.
3. Tending to Your Mental Health
Achievement and mental wellness go hand in hand. I realized this with my own experience in therapy. Tending to your mental health uncovers patterns and learned behaviors that may be inhibiting your success. By unpacking these patterns, you’re able to separate them from your identity and begin changing them. If you’ve never considered mental health a priority, now is the time, whether through therapy, journaling, meditation, or other methods of healing.
Mental health work isn’t a detour from achievement, it’s an integral part of it. When you begin to heal and understand yourself, you unlock new capacity to move toward goals, discover your strengths, and be the person you want to be.
4. Learning to Be Kind to Yourself
Self-criticism can be relentless for high achievers who struggle with mental health. A transformation happens when you start to treat yourself with kindness instead of judgment. For many, perfectionism and shame can sap energy and prevent progress, I know this all too well. Compassion will help to refuel motivation and spark a healthier relationship with ambition.
Being kind means recognizing that having highs and lows is normal. Instead of beating yourself up on low days, celebrate the progress made during the highs, and show patience during the lows. Over time, this practice can neutralize self-doubt and replace negative self-talk with encouragement.
Redefining Achievement
Ultimately, achievement is about becoming the person you wish to be, by your own definition. It’s not about fame, wealth, or external validation. Ambition and mental health can not only coexist, but need to. Mental health is a key ingredient in your personal success. With self-acceptance, patience, and listening to your own voice, you can work toward your purpose even while working through your mental health issues.
If you’re navigating mental health struggles and yearning to achieve your goals, know that you can still achieve what you desire and be the person you want to be. Remember, your journey is uniquely yours, and you’re capable of more than you know.
If you are struggling with your mental health and need immediate support you can always call or text 988. This is a 24/7 support line for anyone.
This article was written with the help of AI (castmagic) but reviewed and edited by a human being.