What Sophie Said

Hello, July. I’m really, really glad to see you. You’ve always been my favourite month, my birthday month, my happy month. June was really hard. In June I hit a brick wall when it came to my anxiety and depression and I had to press reset. I spent two weeks sleeping, reading, learning. I returned to work. I’m building up my food intake. I’m building healthy habits. I’m learning to cope. But it’s been a hard, hard month. There have been achievements during it and I’ve learned an awful lot, but I’m ready for the fresh feel of a new month. I’ve come out of June with a new outlook. Rather than masking my problems and pretending I’m fine, I need to tackle them properly. Fully. For good. Take on those deep-rooted issues I’ve spent three years just masking and ‘getting on with’. It’s been hard, and there’s a long road ahead, but long term these changes will make a huge difference to my health and my happiness. So, July. I’m glad to see you....

May was about realising when I need a break. The week in Kent was a bit of a wake up call, reminding me how important it is sometimes to switch off from everything. The month ended with a beautiful evening at Lambeth Palace for a masquerade ball. And what about this month? The theatre trips are back, for a start, which is good because I'm having withdrawal symptoms! My dad's coming to visit so we can head to Funny Girl, and I'm also seeing Titanic the Musical later in the month. I saw an amateur production of it a few years ago and was really impressed, so I'm looking forward to seeing it in the West End, complete with one of my sister's friends as a cast member. There are films lined up that I want to see, including the new X Men and Race, plus the excitement of looking forward to my birthday month in July. I want June to be about enjoying the things I have lined up whilst remembering what I took away from Kent: the need to slow my mind down and try and...

The fifth month of the year has already joined us. As I always say, the past month has flown by. April began with the most beautiful, sunny weekend in Hertfordshire. I finally went to the Harry Potter Studio Tour , and had a day out at Paradise Wildlife Park . De Vere Theobalds Park Hotel was the setting for the weekend, and I had the most relaxing, wonderful time. Later in the month, my wonderful friend Laura  RAN THE LONDON MARATHON. I'm so, so proud of her, and was tracking her throughout the whole course, getting a little emotional when she'd done it. I also saw Disney's stunning new adaptation of The Jungle Book , and had plenty of lovely, relaxed meals out. It was an action-packed month, as usual, with these things joined by a busy month at work, and the final appointment of my 6-week intensive counselling course for my anxiety. In amongst all that, the month has just slipped by. May looks set to be a good one, too. I've got a few plans and evenin...

I'm glad you're here, April. March seemed to last a really, really long time. I've had a little blog break, just because I felt like I needed it. One of the most recent posts I did, Sticks and Stones, took a bit of courage to publish. It had been ready, waiting, for months but pressing publish meant telling people, including those close to me, how much that event had affected me. I'm glad I pressed 'go'. I think I needed to get it out. To make it clear how important it is to think before you speak. After that, I stepped back a bit. I wasn't feeling particularly motivated to write, so rather than force anything I just took some time to breathe. That's the luxury of having a space that is all mine. March was busy, as ever. Work has been busy, and theatre trips have featured, of course. The Maids was pretty spectacular, and Avenue Q was the delight I remembered from first seeing it about four or five years ago (reviews on both to come...). The...

You’ve come round quickly. January seemed to last for weeks on end, but February crept by without me really even noticing. I’ve had a fairly quiet month, mainly working then relaxing in good company. March is a busy one, this year. I’ve filled up my weekends with things I’m really looking forward to. There’s the day my mum is coming to London for food and museums and exhibitions. There are two shows in my diary. There’s an overnight stay in a place which looks beautiful and calm. We have a big event at work mid-month which I know will be a long day, but I’m interested to see how it all runs, as I hadn’t joined the company yet when it ran last year. I’ve started seeing a new counsellor. More to come on that soon, but those sessions will be another key feature of the month. We had our first appointment last week and I’m feeling good about it. Apart from that, there are catch-ups with friends lined up, and a couple of my favourite people have birthdays...

Hello, February. You've waited patiently; January seemed to last forever. There's a quote on Instagram at the moment which says '2016 starts on 1st Feb. January was a free trial month'. This made me laugh, and part of me agrees, but then I realised the miserable month of January was quite a positive one. I've overhauled my eating habits and am getting more healthy. I've started exercising daily before work. I had the most wonderful weekend away. I went to two brilliant theatre productions. It could have been a lot worse, let's put it that way. February, I love the fact you start on a Monday. There's something so neat about a new week and a new month coinciding, it's always a favourite day of mine. I feel like this is the month to try and learn to like pancakes. The month to continue eating better, and working on my fitness. We're moving towards Spring, and the lighter hours are making a huge difference to my mood. I've g...

Hello, August. I feel like you’re going to be a great month this year. I’m moving to London. I’m starting my new job. That’s two pretty huge things. Exciting things. I’ll be making new plans, new memories, settling into new routines. Meeting new people, taking on new responsibilities, learning new things. Exploring new places, visiting new attractions, taking in new sights. Visiting old friends, meeting new ones. Finding my feet in the Big City. Swapping hourly trains for tubes travelling minutes apart. Swapping a quiet town for a bustling city. August, I’m excited.