Category: mental health

Unraveling

Sep 5, 2025

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by

Niki Herron

in ADHD, anxiety, author, Book Launch, cognitive distortions, defective, family, introvert, journaling, mental health, parenting, phone anxiety, shame, social anxiety, vulnerability

My brain feels as if it is slipping away from me. I am forgetful, scattered, and overwhelmed. I can only imagine it is a biproduct of the anxiety about the book launch. Or perimenopause. Or both. Since returning from Ireland I’ve felt more and more lost in my own head. It’s like while I was…
Book Launch and a Chorus of Critics

Aug 11, 2025

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by

NicoleHerronWrites

in anxiety, author, Book Launch, cognitive distortions, creativity, imposter syndrome, intuition, intuitive writing, journaling, mental health, mindfulness, people-pleasing, perfectionism, social anxiety, vulnerability, Writer’s Journey, writing

It’s set. I am launching my book on September 13th. Two weeks after I come back from Ireland. Am I freaking out? You betcha! But I’m doing my best to quiet down my Council of Critics (more on that in a bit). What started as a seed of an idea that I came up with…
How do you relax?

Jul 31, 2025

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by

NicoleHerronWrites

in anxiety, author, cognitive distortions, Deadlines, Focus, journaling, lonliness, mental health, motivation, office, self-care, time anxiety, writing

I seem to be lacking the relaxation muscle. Here I am at a point in my writing process when I should be able to sit back and enjoy some down time, but instead I can’t quiet my brain enough to do things I actually enjoy. Sage has encouraged me to have days where I don’t…
Feeling adrift

Jul 27, 2025

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by

Niki Herron

in anxiety, author, depression, family, grief, journaling, lonliness, mental health, parenting, social anxiety, time anxiety, volunteering, vulnerability, Writer’s Journey, writing

I’ve journaled before about my concern regarding knowing who I am once my children leave the nest. I’ve made it a goal to find who I am apart from their mom. Without a job title that was easily definable, I was searching for a new title. I thought Author would be a good fit. And…
Author Con

Jul 22, 2025

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by

NicoleHerronWrites

in anxiety, author, exposure therapy, family, fiction, friendship, hiding, imposter syndrome, INFJ, introvert, intuition, journaling, lessons, mental health, planning, self promotion, social anxiety, social media, socializing, writing

Saturday I attended a local author convention. We have a friend we’ve known for almost thirty years that has been writing books for awhile now and had posted that she would be there. I thought it might be a good idea to get an idea of what it might be like from an author’s perspective.…
Grilled cheese and anxiety soup

Jul 15, 2025

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by

Niki Herron

in anxiety, cognitive distortions, exposure therapy, hiding, imposter syndrome, INFJ, introvert, journaling, lessons, mental health, motivation, parenting, people-pleasing, perfectionism, personality, social anxiety, socializing

My husband has friends that are extroverts, so he gets invited to things from time to time. He notified me on Friday that he had been invited to an annual Girled Cheese party (long story on the unique name) for the next day. The idea behind the party is that everyone brings a unique grilled…
How should I launch?

Jul 9, 2025

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by

NicoleHerronWrites

in anxiety, author, Book Launch, characters, church, cognitive distortions, Cosmic Smash Book, creativity, Faith, hiding, imposter syndrome, journaling, mental health, perfectionism, planning, self promotion, social anxiety, TEP3, triggers, vulnerability, writing

I’ve had a few people ask me when my book will be released and I have given vague answers because I haven’t picked a specific date, so yesterday in the coaching call I asked Sage how I should go about choosing one. Which became much more emotional than I expected. It’s hard enough to think…
Discomfort

Jul 2, 2025

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by

Niki Herron

in anxiety, author, Beta Readers, blogging, cognitive distortions, exposure therapy, family, friendship, Growth, hiding, imposter syndrome, journaling, lessons, mental health, people-pleasing, perfectionism, personality, shame, social anxiety, social media, TEP3, theatre, triggers, vulnerability

It’s no secret that being seen scares me. I’ve tried my best to be open and honest about it (in as quiet a way as possible) because it makes things a tiny bit easier. When I name my fear, it gives it less power. So that’s what I’m doing today. Naming the fear. Yesterday was…
Editing Mode

Jun 28, 2025

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by

NicoleHerronWrites

in anxiety, author, Beta Readers, cognitive distortions, Deadlines, editor, Feedback, fiction, friendship, imposter syndrome, introvert, intuitive writing, journaling, mental health, perfectionism, social anxiety, writing

I finished revisions based on beta feedback last week. I’ve been busy volunteering for VBS at my church every day, so I’m glad I got it done before that started. I’ve moved into the next step – editing. I have a lovely friend that I met through my social anxiety exploration that is a proofreader…
Trust

Jun 5, 2025

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by

NicoleHerronWrites

in aging, anxiety, cognitive distortions, Cosmic Smash Book, creativity, discovery, Growth, journaling, mental health, parenting, people-pleasing, perfectionism, social anxiety, Tarot, TEP3, triggers, Trust

A theme has been coming up for me throughout the last month. The theme of Trust. Not of trusting others, but of trusting myself. That seems to be a big hurdle for me to overcome. I’m constantly seeking external validation. I trust the opinions and knowledge of others before I trust myself. I question myself…