Lissa

For me, a lot of being healthy is about being happy. Having suffered from long term illness since I was about 8, I’ve definitely gotten used to struggling with a lot of health ups and downs. Looking back on my time in Sixth Form and University I’ve realised that the root cause of these health downs is stress. At last I’ve started to see that it’s just not worth it to stress so much about the grades I get, or anything for that matter. I no longer aim to get the best grades and a career with an impressive salary to achieve happiness, because happiness is something I feel now. I get it out of doing things I enjoy, like sitting in the kitchen with my housemates and just laughing, and Christmas with my family. I also get it out of helping other people. It’s horrible that the pressure and hate that surrounds us has made us think happiness is achieved by ticking certain boxes, and that it can’t be achieved if they aren’t all ticked.

I also think that jealousy is way too prevalent nowadays. I think we should be proud of other people’s achievements, rather than jealous of them. The people that surround me are brilliant in so many different ways and I think that needs to be acknowledged.

I’ve also learnt to admit when I feel unhealthy. Pretending to myself and others that I was not ill in the past has just meant that I’ve made my health much much worse. It’s not cowardly or shameful to be ill, sometimes you just need help, and this help is much easier to get/ give if you ask for it early on. I hope that I can offer some sort of help to anyone if they ever feel unhappy or unhealthy in any way. I really would love everyone to feel as happy and healthy as I do now.’