Amy K's Top 10 for 2010

2010 has been a big year for so many, there have been hard times to overcome as well as joys and adventures. I have written a lot and some of it has been read! I have participated in new things and I have enjoyed community both online and off. I can only believe that 2011 will be even better as my confidence grows and my Health Activist voice gets stronger! In the spirit of gratitude for the gifts of this past year I share my Top 10 of 2010!

1. The creation of the Mental Health and Social Media Chat on Twitter. (#mhsm) In the beginning of February of 2010, (February 9, 2010 to be exact) I launched, in a solo effort, the #mhsm chat on Twitter. It has continued on every Tuesday evening, now at 9pm Eastern (with only one exception) since. The community has grown and been a great source of conversation, brainstorming, and awareness efforts. We have had special guest hosts and moderators as well as guests that we have feautured in an interview/Q&A type format. It has been so exciting to be at the helm of the creation of what has turned out to be a global community of Health Activists who care about mental health issues. We always welcome new participants. You can find all transcripts at http://wthashtag.com/mhsm. To participate in the chat, follow me (@Abeeliever) and @MHSMchat on Twitter, as well as @NAMIMass. Cindy, @NAMIMass, is an integral part of the chat as she has come to do most of the moderating now. This chat would not have been possible without a group effort and I have certainly not worked alone as the chat has grown. The support and participation of others has made the chat possible! I can't wait to see how it continues to grow in 2011.

2. A Challenge: Put the Active into Activist. This post of mine still holds true today just as much as it did the day I wrote it. For that reason, I am adding it to my Top 10. As a Health Activist I want to bring my message and passions to the online communities I participate in, but also to the offline communities... as many as I can reach really. To take my activist efforts to another level is a challenge I give myself continually and will carry it forward into 2011. You can share your ideas and join the challenge, too!

3. Back to Basics. In March of 2010 I wrote perhaps what has been my only series thus far on WEGO Health: Back to Basics is a series about focusing on the basics for addressing depression and anxiety in particular, but can also be adapted for many health conditions. In addition to the first post, there are 4 follow-up posts called "The Basics for Battle (Fighting Depression)" Numbers 1-4. You can start here with number 1 if you are so inclined.

4. #MHM2010. A most definite highlight of the entire year for me was taking part in WEGO Health's Mental Health Month #MHM2010 initiative. We developed a slew of ways to engage other Health Activists in Mental Health Month 2010. It was so exciting to be a part of this collective effort. We collected ideas from Health Activists, WEGO Health developed a special widget, we held dedicated #mhsm chats, created a list of tweets and facebook status updates and I was able to take part in a webinar on WEGO Health specifically for this effort called, Health Activist Focus: Mental Health Month. You can find most of the details about the project here: http://www.wegohealth.com/mhm2010. It was truly an incredible effort that included the particpation of other organizations and a great number of activists online. I believe I was part of implementing an innovative and integrative social media strategy for Health Activism and it was hugely satisfying.

5. Summer 2010. On a very personal note, the Summer of 2010 was a most momentous one for me, on so many levels. My family moved, which in and of itself would be big, but we had to overcome a lot of obstacles to make this move. We also put a whole lot of blood, sweat and tears into making the home "ours" and taking it from somethig that was completely neglected to a home that is now loved. I participated in far more activity than I have been able to in Summers past. Working on the house (tirelessly) started it off but I kept the momentum going and was able to take my kids to the pool frequently... I really enjoyed Summer. Living with fibromyalgia for the past few years, this was the first Summer I have been able to do that in a long time! I kept up my health activist efforts as well, but was able to focus a lot of my time and energy on my kids. It was just a gift all around.

6. BlogWorld. I had the incredible opportunity to participate in Blogworld 2010. As a Health Activist and blogger it was an amazing opportunity to share my thoughts and voice as a panel participant. It was also a fantastic chance to meet and build relationships with Health Activists I had previously only known online. I really can't explain precisely what this opportunity meant for me, but if I wasn't going in a sort of chronological order with my list, it would be right at the top!

7. Podcamp Topeka. I had another Health Activist happy moment when I participated in Podcamp Topeka as a speaker in November. It was my first time leading a session completely on my own, an hour long session at that, on Health Social Media. I wrote a bit about it here on WEGO Health in the post, "Speaking Out as a Health Activist". Not only was it a great experience for me to speak and lead a session but I also learned a great deal from the other sessions I attended.

8. Continuing Health Activism with Chronic Pain Webinar. At the end of November I had the privilege to be a panelist in WEGO Health's "Continuing Health Activism with Chronic Pain Webinar". I was in the wonderful company of Julia, from Reasonably Well Julia and Kelly. from RA Warrior. It was such an informative and inspiring experience to share along with these other Health Activists who are also challenged with Chronic Pain.

9. Una Vita Bella, the blog. Away from WEGO Health, I blog at Una Vita Bella (a beautiful life). This is my personal blog where I share my heart and soul and work to provide help and inspiration to others challenged by chronic pain and mental health issues. It is my goal to learn how to live a more beautiful life each day despite the challenges of these health issues and it is by sharing openly about my experiences that I feel I am best able to do that. I was honored, just a couple of days ago, by Psych Central as a Top Ten Depression Blog of 2010. I can't even begin to tell you what a surprise and honor it is to have that distinction. I am in amazing company and truly humbled as I know there are so many fantastic blogs to choose from, I really am unable to descirbe accurately how good it feels. What a Christmas gift and way to end the year!

10. Una Vita Bella, the community. I just recently created Una Vita Bella, the community, as a ning network. It is my hope to bring others who are also striving to live a more beautiful life with chronic pain and mental health issues together, as a community, so that we can share and support one another. I hope that the community will be a great platform for others to develop their voice, share resources, find encouragement and inspiration. It is still very much in its infancy, but I envision great growth in 2011 and it is most definitely an exciting adventure to embark on personally as I work to create a community with my own passion and purpose.

As I look back, 2010 was quite a year and it is ending on a high note! I don't know what 2011 has in store, but I know that the opportunities are great and that my passion for health activism is as strong as ever!

 

I'll leave you with a video, something that should have made my top 10 list but I forgot about it until after I already created the list! Vlogging was definitely a new and fun experience for me in 2010, as WEGO Health held it's first Vlog Contest, as well. This was my entry, and needless to say, not a winner, but still my effort!

 

 

This post is my December entry in the Health Activist Blog Carnival. If you're interested in participating too, you can read all about here: http://blog.wegohealth.com/2010/12/new-health-activist-blog-carniva....