Figuring out how to start this website was a frustrating venture for someone as web-illiterate as myself, so I want to take a minute and give a (relatively) quick explanation of why I chose to do it.

A few years ago, I had pretty much hit rock bottom, emotionally.  I have since clawed my way back from severe depression and anxiety, obesity and weight-related health problems, and a number of other issues.  Certainly nothing as dramatic as some people have to deal with, but still – issues that can make some people, including myself, feel worthless and out of control.

It occurred to me, having finally reached a point in my life where I feel happy and comfortable with myself and my situation, that I really could have used some real advice when I was going through the thick of my problems.  I got pseudo-helpful advice constantly from well-meaning friends and family, who either wanted to help but had no idea what I was feeling or just wanted me to buck up, pull myself up by the bootstraps, etc.  If one more person had told me that I was normal and just needed to try harder, I probably would have exploded.

I am currently training to be a mental health counselor, and I have some experience (though no official certification yet, I admit) with personal fitness training and weight loss.  These being my past areas of weakness, I have chosen to focus as much energy as possible in learning how to conquer them.  I would like to think, now, that I have learned enough and experienced enough to be able to help other people as well.

That is my goal with this website.  I plan to write as much as possible about different areas of life that I struggled with, in the hopes that someone else who has encountered these same problems might be able to escape rather more unscathed than I did.

If you have any topics you wish for me to write about, feel free to leave a comment and I will (once I figure out how this darned internet thing works) do my best to shed some light if I have had any experience with the subject.

If it seems like these topics get popular enough after a while, I might set up a forum or other system where people can get personalized advice from other users and myself. My eventual goal is to run a counseling service, either fully online or partially so. I am not yet a licensed counselor, though I am in school pursuing that path, and would love to get an early start on that with this website, if possible.