My name is Nikki, I am 31 years old and live in rural Hampshire with my beautiful Fiance Faye and our three children: Araydia, Daisy and William - they are all 7 years old! I will give you some time to work that out in your head...

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We have 5 rabbits who live outside - Rukia, Peter, Rocky, Snowy and Socks. Inside the house is our cheeky Continental Giant bunny Dandelion and our crazy Border Collie Chase (pictured above). They are best friends. My hobbies and interests include: crystals and crystals and bunnies and bunnies. Oh and I enjoy drawing/colouring, computer games - mostly Pokemon on my DS (guilty pleasure - I am a geek), reading, jewellery making, cross-stitch and a load of other little things that I never get time to finish - talk about taking on too much! 

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One thing I love to do is acts of kindness. Before becoming unwell, I founded a Random Act of kindness project - every week I would do something new and then do a larger scale act once a month. This is something I will continue to do and fully integrate it into my blog.

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I have suffered with my mental health since I was a child, thanks to chronic bullying and assorted traumatising events. I began healing myself whilst studying psychic reading and holistic healing at a college in Eastbourne. When I graduated I was 3 months pregnant with my daughter Araydia. I took to motherhood like a duck in water and loved every minute of it. I decided that in order to be a good role model for Araydia I needed to further my education - so I began studying for my Degree in Social Work. The pressure of going back into education is what caused the relapse in my mental health. I developed Bulimia Nervosa and was obsessed with getting everything just right, it had to be perfect or it wasn't good enough. I did really well and graduated with 1st class honours, but it sure took its toll on me. 

During my last year of University my grandma suddenly passed away on Christmas day 2015. Having never really experienced loss, I didn't know what to expect but it hit me hard. We were very close and I had been her carer over the few years prior to her passing. One minute she was well and bouncing Araydia on her knee and that night she was gone. My eating disorder got worse, I began self harming again and developed a dependence on over the counter pain medication just to get through a day.

 

I started outpatient therapy for my bulimia in Jan 2016 and as with all recovery journeys, it was a bumpy ride but I was making good steady progress. Then my best friend passed away after her long hard battle with her own mental health. Losing Helen was one thing too much and I had a total mental breakdown...

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Faye was the only friend I had left (even though I had been secretly falling in love with her, and her me) and had it not been for her support and love I know that I would not be here now. Faye wanted to support me through my recovery journey to finally resolve and make peace with my past. Here we are now two years into recovery and I am finally ready to stop hiding. I want to raise awareness of mental health, fight the stigma and inspire others to speak out too. 

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My Bunny Crystal Life xxx