Why I Started Inspired by Diane
Back in the fall of 2017, everything changed for me didn't know what was going on, and I didn't know what was in store for me next. All I knew was that I didn't feel like myself. I searched the internet for days and weeks, looking for answers to solve the questions that I'm currently asking myself. And that is how Inspired by Diane came to be.
Okay, so that may not be the whole story, but it is the beginning of it. I started struggling with depression and anxiety in my last year of college, in my fall semester. I suppose that the pressure of graduation and finding a job after graduating was really getting to me. I didn't know what I was experiencing (now I know it was anxiety) but I have never experienced something like it before.
Started from the bottom...
It took over my body and my mind, and my emotions were drained. I started getting so nervous about deciding what my next meal would be that day, or the fact that I was so nervous that I had to work at the same time every day, that I threw up almost every morning before work. Sometimes, I even threw up at work, and that is when I knew that something had to change. Thankfully, I had a coworker who told me about on-campus therapy that was free to students. I've never been to a counselor before, but I felt like anything would help at this point, since I couldn't find the answers myself.
As I started taking tests at the psychiatrist, I quickly learned that I was dealing with general anxiety and depression. I started looking all over the internet for ways to help with anxiety, ways to help with depression, tricks to make it go away - anything to minimize the feelings of anxiety and depression that were over looming every aspect of my life.
After a lot of research, note-taking, talking with my therapist and psychiatrist, and thinking to myself - I wanted to put my knowledge somewhere out in the world where people could access and learn from what I've already experienced and learned from. I've always loved writing since I was young. When I was in elementary school, I would write poems just for fun, and one time I actually got into a poetry book, which means I got published! Maybe I should put that on my resume.
My job during the fall semester of 2017 Was working in a computer lab on campus. One of the projects that we had to do during our semester or semesters of working in the computer lab was to make a website from scratch. Meaning, you would have to learn by coding, how to make a website. honestly, I was kind of excited to figure out what exactly went behind web design. A couple of online tutorials later, and I built a website that I got a 100% on for a grade. Not too shabby, if I do say so myself.
After this little test run, I started looking into blogging platforms that I could start my own lifestyle blog on. It didn't take me long to figure out what the name of my blog was. I wanted people to say that from reading my blog posts, they were “inspired by Diane” to tell their friends about it. It made sense in my head, at least - so I went running with it.
I started getting inspired by stuff on Pinterest and Instagram, and different articles that I have read throughout the weeks of November December 2017. I found WordPress as my first blogging platform, and I actually posted my first blog post on my one-year wedding anniversary. It was a lot of first that day!!
I had idea after idea, and wanted to share so many bits and pieces of information with anyone who was willing to read my blog. eventually, I caught the eyes of about a hundred viewers a month, and I was super excited that people were actually reading something that I put my written effort into.
...now we're here
Fast-forward to present day (January 2021), and I have a vast catalog of Life, Style, Food, Relationships and Wellness blog posts for readers to explore. I am still working on creating a consistent posting schedule & social media presence, but I still have a full-time job behind this lifestyle blog that I run. I hope to, one day, make my blog my full-time job. But until that day, I will do my best to balance my work, home and blog life.
Thank you to all my readers who have been there since day one, and the new readers that are finding my blog from around the world, daily.
If you have any suggestions for blog posts, you can leave them in the comments, or DM me on social media! My personal Instagram is @dianesmullis and the blog Instagram is @inspiredbydianeblog. I also have a contact page on my blog that you can find here.
Do you have any questions for me about my blog, or me in general? Let me know in the comments!
And if you feel inspired by anything on my blog, please make sure you tag #inspiredbydiane on social media, so I can see!
