Clark told POPSUGAR that she's dealt with mental illness for the majority of her life. "I don't remember a time when I wasn't anxious," she said. "As a child, I would beg my parents not to go to school or do extracurricular activities because the thought of judgement was so anxiety-provoking. The anxiety has never left, and I still have generalised anxiety disorder to this day." She also has depression, OCD, and trichotillomania, a hair-pulling disorder.
Clark had to move back home and said she found that she prefers online learning because she likes doing work at her own pace. The fact that her mom is an essential worker at a hospital in NYC, she said, worsens her anxiety about COVID-19. The pandemic also stirs up grief from when her grandfather passed away three years ago. "Knowing that older populations are at extremely high risk makes me very emotional," she said.
Being home, though, has somewhat stabilized Clark's anxiety at the same time because she feels as though she doesn't have to worry about going to classes. "As someone who is more of an introvert, being alone is preferable," she explained. She's also been focusing on personal and career development. Here are some mental-health-manageing tools she's found useful:
- Exercise: working out at least three times a week makes it easier for her to get acquainted with being back home because that's what she would do at school.
- Therapy: Clark talks to three therapists a week. "It allows me to vent to people who won't judge me and can provide some insight into my condition and how I can go about better manageing it," she said.
- Making a to-do list: she usually types out a list in the beginning of the week, and crossing things off of that list keeps her feeling accomplished.
- Watching TV, specifically RuPaul's Drag Race: Watching that show in particular allows her to "escape from the problems of everyday life," and it's a distraction that provides joy to get through this difficult time.