In a previous post, I talked about my struggle with depression and how my goal for the year is to inject happiness into my life. I mentioned things that I’m doing to help keep my depression at bay. But there was one thing I didn’t talk about because I wanted to dedicate an entire post to it, and that’s the group chat.
I cannot tell you how much the group chat saved my sanity.
I don’t know if you realize this, but the group chat is more than a place to shoot the shit and share memes. This is an ultimate safe space for everyone in it to bare your souls in exchange for genuine love and support. Think about when you’re having a moment with your man, job, or life where’s the first place you go? The chat.
In other words, group chat is group therapy.
This is where I would go to unleash my feelings without fear of judgment. I could just express something that’s irking me and a short time later there are my girls chiming in reassuring me shit is gonna be alright. Or sometimes I wouldn’t get a response right away, cause folks got lives and shit to do, but I still felt better cause I was no longer holding on to those emotions. That ‘send’ button was the release I needed. It helped me go on about my day. Yeah, I’d still be somewhat in whatever feelings I was in but it didn’t consume me and weigh me down.
This is what makes the group chat so damn important. It lets you know you aren’t going through shit alone. Cause this is how depression can make you feel. Alone. It can take you to that dark ugly lonely places inside you and slowly eat away. But I knew I would be fine cause I had women who would be there to support me. And even though I’m notoriously private when it comes to my emotions I find comfort in having a sacred place to release those emotions with no worry of judgment. Which is what I (and most people) fear the most, judgment.
This is how I’ve been able to survive
Now don’t get it twisted, group chat support isn’t a one-way street. This isn’t about me dumping my problems and emotions on my friends and them being my support rock. No. This is about us being a rock for each other. The same loving support they give me is given right back to them in their time of need.
And let me be clear, the group chat isn’t all somber and sadness. Oh, fuck no. We have a good time in there. Aside from jokes and shit, we give each other work tips, motivate and keep one another accountable for goals we’ve set, big each other up when we’ve done awesome work, and reassure when we’re doubtful. It’s pretty lit in there and I’m proud and lucky as shit to have a little private corner of the innanets that’s just for us.