"Do not always listen to everything you think"

Every year the 4th of July is a reminder to me that the year is half over. It lets me know the kids only have less than a month left until school starts back. Lastly, it reminds me how proud I am of my country and the men and women that serve to ensure we get to watch fireworks every single year. I am an extremely proud Veteran that comes from a long line of Veterans. Because of my passion and past with the military I am making it my mission in the month of August to reach out to the Veteran community. I know for myself journaling would have been a life saver while I was in the military and away from my family and friends for us long periods of time. I also know that coming back in some cases therapy is what gets us through. It was very hard to transition back to civilian life after being in the Army. It is hard for every soldier especially if you are making a career change and getting out for good. I want to reach out to not only the soldiers who are serving right now but I also want to reach out to other Vet programs in the community and at the VA hospital. I want to see if there is anyway I can repay my gratitude by paying for a journal in hopes that this journal will help them as much as they have me over the years. 

According to PsychCentral "Art therapy is helpful in alleviating the psychological trauma experienced by soldiers returning from war zones in Afghanistan and Iraq.  The research was conducted by Cheryl Miller, who used the study as part of her master’s thesis in Concordia University’s Department of Creative Arts Therapies." If you get a chance please check out the website at  http://psychcentral.com/news/2011/05/06/art-therapy-alleviates-ptsd-symptoms-in-veterans/25979.html

If you are interested in seeing or helping with other projects like this in the future please leave me a comment below and let me know your thoughts. 

Earlier in the week I had someone tell me "don't listen to everything you think."-unknown This statement is so small and powerful to me right now considering my circumstance. I don't think many people know so let me share a piece of my story really quick with you. I was the girl who did Crossfit every single day. I loved the changes to my body and I loved the way I felt after a good workout. In October I sustained/aggravated a spinal cord/nerve/disc injury. In all of my years I have never had anything lay me flat like this. For the past 8 months I have been very restricted on what I could do. Being someone that is always active you can imagine I am not doing very well with this. In December I found a wonderful art community on Facebook and the rest is history. Art has gotten me through the darkest and most difficult days in my life. I get very down on myself and beat myself up harder than anyone else ever could. After 8 months of medically not getting very far in the system has lead to extreme frustration on my part. I have never been one not to work out so I am also very hard on myself and how I physically look. The quote above is helpful for me because it reminds me that I think the worst of myself and how I look. It reminds me that when I'm being hard on myself I should stop and remember we all deserve a little grace. This reminds me to stop picking myself apart and consciously make an effort to think positive. 

Remember that we are open to suggestions on what you would like a product review on. Gelato's, Tim Holtz distress inks, PanPastels... you name it and I'll review it. Once the review is complete I will be giving away some of the products to members that comment on my blog injury below. Happy 4th of July Friends and Family! 



<3 Tina

P.S. Check back in next week for the reveal of a huge secret that I can hardly stand to keep quiet. Your gonna love it! Cher, Patti and Kelly don't even know about it.. eeekkkk...






References:

Pedersen, Traci . "Art Therapy Alleviates PTSD symptoms in Veterans." . N.p., 6 May 2011. Web. 5 July 2014. <http://psychcentral.com/news/2011/05/06/art-therapy-alleviates-ptsd-symptoms-in-veterans/25979.html>.