Gap Year Blog Series: Day 20

Hello everyone! Happy almost-hump-day! It’s currently 2:46pm on this sunny Tuesday afternoon. No class today, just work in the evening. I woke up at 8am and had a great morning workout with my friend Anna, who is a UCLA gymnast. It was really cool seeing how UCLA gymnasts train. The workout was undoubtedly intense, but not as unbearable as I anticipated it to be! Oh, another thing– I saw this cute guy in a yellow shirt in the weights room this morning, and if my eyes don’t deceive me, I believe I caught him glancing over at me a couple times? Once as I was working out, and once as I was leaving the gym. Oh, what a feeling that was. But no matter, nothing is coming of it, as I’m leaving LA in a couple months, on September 14th. No point in stirring up romance where it doesn’t belong.

One of my goals for this gap year (and life in general) is to take better care of my physical health, which means getting back in shape. Having graduated college, I no longer can pull the same old excuse of “oh, I’m studying all the time so I can’t work out”. I am now more committed than ever to accomplish my long-term goal of getting fit, and gaining back my pre-college toned physique. Later today, I’ll be working out again at around 5pm, after which I will teach an hour-long dance fitness class at UCLA’s gym. I find that two-a-day’s (aka working out twice a day) works really well for me.

So what else have I been up to, since I last spoke to y’all? Well, my job at the figure skating rink is really taking off. I recently started teaching a rhythmic gymnastics class at the rink, and the girls seem to be loving it! My Saturday 11:50am class is super big– 10 little girls in a small off-ice area twirling ribbons, bouncing balls, and spinning hoops. And I have to oversee it all. Definitely NOT an easy task, but as long as they’re enjoying, that’s all that matters. Clientele is really building up for me. Word got out that there was a new stretching/rhythmic gymnastics coach at the rink (aka me), and a lot of parents have been hitting me up for lessons. Oh, how it breaks my heart that I must leave them so soon! Indeed, my decision to move back home in September was not an easy one. But I know I must put my mental health first, and if going home to gain access to better and more accessible mental health care is what it takes, then return home I must. Even if it means giving up a great job at the rink, as well as my job as a dance fitness instructor.

Alrighty, guys. Time to get some studying done before heading to the gym. I’ll talk to you guys soon!

 

 

 

XOXO,

Belicia

Gap Year Blog Series: Day 9

Hey guys! Happy hump day / day-before-July-4th!

I’m actually sitting in class as I begin today’s post. The lecture is not particularly engaging, and the material is nothing I do not already know. So here I am, passing time by writing this post!

Life is really good. Busy, but good. I’m taking classes and working full-time at the skating rink and school gym. Taught my first dance fitness class yesterday, and I think it went really well! Turnout wasn’t super big, but that’s to be expected, as many students are gone for the summer. Plus, it’s the week of the 4th of July, and some people are out of town. As for my skating rink job, I’m getting a lot of new clients who are demanding private lessons in stretching, conditioning, ballet, and even rhythmic gymnastics! There’s one mom in the rink who is super desperate for her kid to get flexible. She’s been demanding private lessons three times a week and giving me a detailed list for things to work on with her kid. Talk about a crazy skating mom! But she’s also been really helpful in spreading the word about my services, and because of her I’ve been gaining more students, which is great for me.

Mental health-wise, I’m doing pretty well. While I’m very busy, I don’t feel super stressed, as really do enjoy work, and my classes are not too difficult. I finally picked up the phone and scheduled a therapy appointment, which will happen on July 18. If this therapist specializes in bipolar disorder, that would be ideal, as I’m very eager to learn more about my illness and how best to cope with it. I read somewhere that it takes at least 10 years before people with bipolar can find a medication and behavioral regimen that works to keep their moods stable. Lots of trial and error in the process, and I was only diagnosed about two years ago, so I still am a long ways away from stability. Sometimes, though, I wonder if gaining mental stability is worth the cost of giving up my hypomanic episodes. For it’s when I am in my states of mania that I feel the most energized, creative, and passionate. Maybe that’s the illness talking… but the fact is, when I am on my highs, I am able to do what most normal people cannot.

I am currently on a 30-day sober cleanse, meaning I am not touching alcohol for at least 30 days. I think it’s about day 6 or 7 now. Honestly, cutting alcohol out of my life has been the best decision I’ve made in a long time! My liver will surely thank me for it! It was definitely hard at first, resisting the temptation to go out to the bars with friends and drink. I remember laying in my bed at 10pm on a Friday night, feeling such FOMO because I had decided to stay in that night. The next night I also stayed in, and the next, and the next. Slowly but surely, that nagging temptation to go out grew smaller and smaller, until now, on day 7 of the cleanse, I no longer have the desire to engage in nightlife! Go me!

Alrighty guys. I’m about to study, so I shall bid you all farewell. Until next time!

 

 

XOXO,

Belicia