A GUIDE TO ONE METHOD OF USING YOUR VOICE IN MENTAL HEALTH | WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY 2026

 “What I'm realizing is that if you're quiet about the things that hurt you, people are only going to mistake your tolerance for permission.”

Ann Liang

When I read that the theme for World Mental Health Day (WMHD) this year is ‘lived experiences heard: real voices, real change’ I was really excited to get started on some content! I say that because it’s a topic – speaking up about mental health – that's very obviously hugely close to my heart, and not just in my career as a mental health Influencer, but also in a more personal and individual respect too. Since the day I created I’m NOT Disordered back in 2013, I have been using my voice to try to achieve a number of different goals that have wildly changed and grown over that time. And I honestly believe that if I hadn’t achieved the things I have over the years of using my voice, I might not be here. Speaking up has helped to define me as a person, helped me to discover my purpose, to create my career, and to leave me with the distinct feeling that the hardships have been worthwhile. With that fundamental impact on my recovery, I wanted to put this blog post together on using your voice in mental health by providing information, understanding, awareness, my own experiences, and tips learned from them of one of the key methods of using your voice that I feel I’ve engaged in the most: providing feedback...

WELCOME NALA - MY LITTLE 'GIFT' | A POEM FOR MY NEW BUNNY

You came when my heart was shattered and sore, 
When sadness had settled deep into my core. 
A little too broken, too frightened to see, 
How happiness ever could find its way back to me.

I’M NOT DISORDERED X ELI GARDNER | READ A BOOK DAY 2026

“This book is for anyone who has loved and lost an animal... Let me help you to find them again, through this story.”

Eli Gardner

At the end of July, my pet bereavement project (Gracie’s Way) received a follow on the project’s Instagram (@GraciesWayUK) from indie Author; Eli Gardner, I decided to check out her profile (@abrakadabraink). When I discovered she had written a book which included discussion of the topic pet bereavement and that she uses her book sales to fund animal rescue, I immediately DM’d her to say thanks and then asked if she’d like to collaborate. I give some brief descriptions of Gracie’s Way, and I’m NOT Disordered and offered to put together a proper collaboration pitch if she was interested, but she actually agreed to the collaboration without me doing so! In our talks to determine exactly what shape the collaboration would take, Eli very kindly gifted me a personalised copy of the book as well as sending a lot more copies with the plan of running a giveaway on both I’m NOT Disordered and Gracie’s Way! So, the plan for this blog post – for Read A Book Day 2026 – is that I’m going to chat through my favourite bits/quotes from Eli’s book; It’s A Wonderful Afterlife and then this will be followed with a Q&A with Eli, and then the methods for entering the giveaway...

A POEM TO WISH MY ELDEST (LUNA) A VERY HAPPY 5TH BIRTHDAY!!!

“I feel like a part of my soul has loved you since the beginning of everything. Maybe we’re from the same star.”

Emery Allen

A HUGE GUIDE TO THE FOUR IMPACTS PET BEREAVEMENT HAS ON YOUR MENTAL HEALTH | IN COLLABORATION WITH PAWFECT PICCIES | NATIONAL GRIEF AWARENESS DAY 2026

35% Discount Code: IMNOTDISORDERED or use the link below to have it automatically applied to your basket: 

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PawfectPiccies - Etsy UK

@PawfectPiccies on Instagram

Pawfect Piccies on Facebook

“Legacy is not leaving something for people. It's leaving something in people.”

Peter Strople

A little while ago, I published a short Q&A about my upcoming – at that time – appearance on BBC Radio Newcastle (you can read the blog post: A SHORT Q&A ABOUT MY UPCOMING RADIO APPEARANCE | I'm NOT Disordered) but something I didn’t mention was the efforts I was going to in order to decide what to wear for it. And I realise it sounds strange to care about my outfit when it’s a radio appearance(!), but I knew there’d be photos being taken for both my social media and for theirs too. So, I knew I wanted something special rather than just another jumper and it was whilst I was on Instagram, that I saw an advert for a company adding pet photos to clothing and inspired by the ad, I ended up finding Pawfect Piccies on Etsy. To find out about my BBC appearance (which you can listen to on my YouTube channel: youtube.com/@aimes_wilson/videos), why it became the ultimate illustration of encouraging talk about pet bereavement because of the recognition of the positive impact that can have on your mental health, and for more details on the collaboration side of this blog post with Pawfect Piccies and photos of my t-shirt from their store (you can purchase the exact same one: Custom Pet T-shirt Dog Drawing From Photo Portrait T-shirt Personalized Dog Pullover Custom Cat T-shirt Dog Mum Gift Dog Lover Shirt - Etsy UK and use the discount code IMNOTDISORDERED at the checkout for 35% off the final cost of your Pawfect Piccies haul!), keep reading…