How We Navigate Grief with Blair

Why I Take Medication for My Mental Health


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Medication can make the world go round.Medication will keep me here.Medication can be the thin, unglamorous thread holding the fabric of my existence together.

I’m not being poetic for effect. I’m being literal.

There are pills in my life that help my brain fire properly, my hormones stay somewhat cooperative, my nervous system calm the hell down, and my body do what it needs to do so I can wake up, work, love, create, grieve, and keep choosing tomorrow.

And I am deeply, unapologetically grateful for them.

I love my meds.

I love that we live in a time where I don’t have to raw-dog life with a dysregulated nervous system and a brain that likes to sprint into existential dread before breakfast. I love that science, medicine, and doctors exist. I love that I don’t have to white-knuckle my way through my own chemistry.

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If you are unmedicated and thriving, I salute you. Truly. If you are unmedicated and suffering, this is your gentle reminder that seeking help is not a sign of weakness. It is resilience.

If you are medicated and quietly ashamed, pull up a chair. You’re my people.

Here is what currently helps hold me together, prescribed, supported, and supervised by my doctor, because this part matters.

* Zoloft, for my brain when it forgets that not every thought is an emergency.

* Progesterone, because hormones are powerful little saboteurs, and it helps manage my endometriosis symptoms.

* Methylphenidate, morning and midday, because focus is not a moral virtue. My ADHD is a superpower and also an enemy.

* A nightly antihistamine, because my immune system is dramatic.

* An IUD, because reproductive health is health. And it helps my endometriosis.

* A GLP-1, because metabolic support is not a character flaw. My substance addiction was replaced with food addiction, and it was exacerbated during grief. This helps quiet the food noise, sugar binges and addictive tendencies.

Then there’s the supporting cast, which is always evolving. Right now it’s:

* Fish oil.

* Magnesium.

* A multivitamin.

* Oil of oregano.

* Betadine, because my body likes a little backup.

This is not a confession. This is a survival inventory.

At different points in my life, medication has been the thing that kept me from exiting this planet too early. Not because I wanted to die, but because living felt too heavy without support. Medication didn’t erase my grief. It didn’t solve my trauma. It didn’t magically make life easy.

What it did was give me enough stability to stay.

Enough space between thought and action.Enough quiet to sleep.Enough regulation to feel, rather than implode.Enough ground under my feet to do the deeper work.

And that matters.

We talk a lot about resilience as if it were sheer willpower. As if strength means pushing through without help. As if asking for chemical support somehow invalidates your coping skills, your therapy, your growth.

That is nonsense.

Resilience is not about suffering harder. It is about staying alive and healing. It is about using every tool available to you, including medication, therapy, boundaries, rest, community, and yes, pills.

Being on medication does not mean you failed at self-care. It means you took it seriously.

It means you listened to your body instead of shaming it. It means you chose evidence over ego. It means you opted out of martyrdom.

I know there are people who whisper about meds like they are a dirty secret. Like they are something you eventually grow out of. Like the goal is to be off everything and somehow “pure.”

I don’t want purity. I want presence. I wanta function. I want to be here.

Some seasons require medication forever. Some require it for now. Some people will never need it. None of these paths is superior.

The only wrong choice is letting shame keep you from support.

* If medication helps you get out of bed, take it.

* If medication helps you not fall into a shame spiral of depression or anything else, take it.

* If medication helps you stay alive, take it loudly and without apology.

You are not weak for needing help. You are wise for accepting it.

And if you are reading this while silently tallying your own pills, supplements, or prescriptions, wondering if you are “too much” or “too broken,” let me say this clearly.

You are not broken. You are human. And you deserve to stay.

If this resonated, you’re not alone. I talk openly about grief, mental health, resilience, and what it actually takes to keep going on my Substack, podcast, social media and over coffee. No toxic positivity. No pretending. Just real conversations for people who are doing their best to stay on the planet.

This is me, held together by science, self-awareness, and a deep commitment to choosing tomorrow.

One pill, one breath, one day at a time.

Let’s navigate your grief together,

XX Blair

P.S. I’m not a doctor, and this isn’t meant to be medical advice. This is the honest truth about my life. If this post sparked something in you, make an appointment with a medical professional to discuss your symptoms and how to manage and treat them.

How We Navigate Grief is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.



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How We Navigate Grief with BlairBy Blair | How We Navigate Grief