Living with mental illness can be debilitating, leaving us trapped in our misery and anxiety. But every day you get out of bed is a victory, every day you rise up and embrace the day with enthusiasm is a victory. Every morning offers a new opportunity to recreate yourself, to become the person you always were meant to be.

It has been said that every morning offers two choices: continue to sleep with your dreams or wake up and chase them. Who do you want to be today? This morning, this bright new day offers you a chance to make choices that will afford you the chance to become the person you always wanted to be.

We who live with mental illness and those of you who struggle with substance use often find it difficult to make even the smallest decisions. If your only choice today is to stay in bed or get out of bed, I urge you to toss aside that down comforter, put your feet on the floor, rise up and stretch the sleep out of your system. Get out of that bed and make the decision that today, you will begin to make healthier choices, to become a better version of you. Who did you want to be when you were little? No one thinks when they are younger that they want to live with depression, anxiety or substance use. Who can you be today? Can you be the person you wanted to be when you were younger?

What choices can you make this morning that will lead to a good day and evening? What choices can you make today that will leave you feeling full and accomplished. What choices can you make today that, when your head hits the pillow at the end of the day, will make you feel as though you took a step forward on the path to a healthier life?

Today is a new day, ripe with possibility. What are you going to do with it? Today is a new day, a chance for you to become a new you. Who do you want to become?