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Those of you who follow my blog will know that I’ve spoken before about how mental illness can rob you of your hobbies and things you used to enjoy. When your energy and motivation are so low, it can be difficult to find enjoyment in anything.

I used to enjoy playing computer games like The Sims and Rollercoaster Tycoon, but when I became unwell, I couldn’t find the energy or the motivation to play anymore. My brain just kept telling me it was pointless because I was physically unable to enjoy anything – my brain didn’t make the right chemicals to enjoy anything.

As part of my recovery, and coupled with a combination of appropriate medication and therapy, I have been trying to explore some old and new hobbies so that I can start to enjoy my life again.

But for me, it was difficult to know where to begin. For starters, I feel like a very different person now – my experience with mental illness has fundamentally changed me as a person. For me, this is because I am diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder, a huge part of which is a lack of sense of identity, and making yourself a chameleon to fit in with the people around you.

So, how can you start to find out what you really enjoy? I know in my case, I had real trouble thinking of things to try.

I spoke to my CPN about this, and she gave me some good advice: Why not just try anything, even if it doesn’t sound good? When recovering from mental illness, it’s not necessarily about immediately finding the perfect hobby, but just getting back into the habit of doing things, period. Try things out, have a go, and if you don’t like it, drop it and try something else.

So I decided to come up with a list of all the hobbies and interests I could think of, then try a few of them. I thought I would share that list with you in case you are in a similar situation.

(With some of these, I have included an affiliate link to something that I think might be helpful in exploring the hobby or activity. For more information on these links, please go to my disclaimer page.)

Here goes!

• Join an amateur dramatics club
• Take an art class
• Start learning a new language
• Take singing lessons
• Join a gym
• Play tennis with a friend
• Take up photography
• Join a book club
• Visit your local museum or art gallery
• Take up horseriding
• Have a go at cosplaying
• Start a YouTube channel
• Yoga or Pilates
• Go camping or glamping
• Volunteer with a local charity
• Take up geocaching
• Play chess with a friend
• Learn to play an instrument
• Baking
• Cooking
• Play with Lego
• Try adult colouring
• Embroidery
• Knitting
• Go skiing or tobogganing
• Cycle
• Go ice-skating
• Go rollerblading
• Go hiking
• LARPing
• Parkour or free-running
• Teach yourself calligraphy
• Start a podcast
• Grow your own herb garden
• Join a football team
• Learn about astronomy
• Take a martial arts class
• Write letters to your family and/or friends
• Start a collection (e.g. books, action figures, comics, vintage clothing)
• Foster/adopt a pet
• Gymnastics
• Write a book
• Learn about your family tree
• Jigsaw puzzles
• Cheerleading
• Join a roller derby team
• Birdwatching
• Create a vision board
• Design a website
• Archery
• Jogging
• Attend an open mic event

I hope that you have found this list helpful – remember it’s obviously not exhaustive, it’s just meant to give some ideas!

Let me know in the comments if you try a new hobby!

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