You don’t have to be a mental health expert to start a mental health blog.

You don’t need a degree in therapy or psychology.

If you’ve reached a place where you feel ready to write about your experience or journey then you’ve already made some breakthroughs.

 

People are not always open to talking about mental health issues.

It’s given me my voice back.

I have so much information in my head about topics only a small percentage of the population would understand.

Mental health issues are not openly talked about, especially if it’s unknown, misunderstood, and directly connected with childhood trauma and abuse.

When you have specific challenges in your life, only the people who have actually been through it can understand what’s going on in your head.

Since my issues are not the ‘norm’ it’s hard to find people in your everyday life who can relate.

Sometimes you don’t have anyone, and many of us suffer in silence.

The internet changed everything, and now people like us can connect with each other, share our stories, and know we’re not alone.

So I say we all put our heads together and find solutions.

Everyone needs emotional support, and a little bit goes a long way.

 

Blogging about your experience helps others.

I didn’t want to create a traditional kind of blog.

I wanted to create something more meaningful.

My idea is to be useful and to be able to give back on my terms, and that’s what this has done for me.

It has given me a purpose, and it can do the same for you too.

 

When you start a mental health blog, it can rapidly improve your own mental health.

It forces you to look at your situation in more objective terms instead of crawling inside the sense of doom and staying there.

Many people in the world have real problems in their day to day life.

Not only do they need to be taken care of but we have to take time to deal with and contemplate the transformations of life.

For the last decade, I’ve been able to focus on my personal development.

I’m not a therapist or psychologist or mental health professional of any kind, and in many ways, I have more to offer, and so do you.

There is no substitute for life experience, especially when you’ve taken the time and continue to do the work to heal.

 

If you’re ready to start a mental health blog, these next statements will ring true:

  1. You’re prepared to go deeper and shed some light in the darkness.
  2. You’re searching for people who can relate to you.
  3. Some people won’t understand, but those are not the people you’re trying to reach.
  4. You’re ready to stand up and be heard in your own little way from a small corner of the universe, maybe even a big way if you decide to take it to the next level.

From what I’ve learned over my lifetime, most people have no idea how to handle a mental health condition, whether it’s yours or someone else’s.

A journal like this brings awareness and understanding, and you know how far a little bit can go.

If you want to make money from your blog, that’s a whole other ballgame, so the first thing you want to do is build it.

Then once you have everything set up and a few articles published, you can start figuring out how to monetize.

This post will tell you exactly what to do in the beginning so when you’re ready, you can legally make money with your blog.

 

How to start a mental health blog and legally make money.

When you’re using a free blogging platform, and you don’t pay for hosting, it’s against their terms of use for you to sell things on their platform.

Even starting a mini blog on social media is using someone else’s platform, and you have to follow their rules.

When you own your blog, you make the rules, and you can sell whatever products or services you want.

I’m not saying you have to make a bunch of money with your blog.

What I am saying is you’re going to want to make money once you realize you can.

 

Blogging 101: What is the definition of web hosting?

Web hosting is a company with the technology to put your blog on the internet so it can be seen online.

They store your blog on what they call servers, and it’s their job to make sure your blog is online at all times.

You can’t possibly store your entire blog on your computer, and you don’t have any way of putting it up online without web hosting.

The free blogging platforms are also paying for hosting, so they can make their own rules.

 

Choosing a hosting provider depends on your needs.

If you’re a first-time blogger at the beginning of your journey, then I recommend Bluehost for a web hosting provider. You only need the basic package and to get the cheapest deal you’ll need to pay in advance for a year or three years for the best price. Read my review here.

I’m going to assume you want the best possible deal for the least amount of money. For $3.95 per/mo, you’ll get everything you need in one complete package and then some.

This company doesn’t just take your money; they educate you. Once you’re on the inside, you start getting free emails that teach you everything you need to know about setting up your blog.

  • Free training
  • Free webinars
  • Opportunity to become an affiliate as soon as your blog is live (make your money back).

Other hosting companies aren’t explicitly designed to offer this kind of in-depth training, and you won’t find it for free anywhere else.

 

Find a web hosting company that specializes in helping new bloggers.

I, for one, as a new blogger, needed all the help I could get. I played around with my blog as much as I wanted, and whatever I did, they always fixed it.

WordPress plugins will trip you up if things aren’t compatible, so you need someone who can shut it all off or tell you what the problems are. I’m on WordPress and I can’t imagine being on any other platform. Plus, when you learn these skills, you can start helping others navigate WordPress and get paid for it. The free plugins they offer will let you do anything you can think of with your blog.

Using WordPress plugins means you can build a blog without any coding skills or experience, which makes it easier than ever to start a blog.

 

A mental health blog raises awareness and helps others know they’re not alone.

Mental health should be an open conversation. People need to be informed about what it’s really like, and then they manage better knowing it’s not just them. People are not informed enough, and we need your voice too.

If you’re reading this post, then you’re here for a reason.

You didn’t get here by accident.

This isn’t a fluke.

People like me are actively searching for people like you. If you’re naturally drawn to writing like I am this could be huge for you. Not everyone will like you or be interested in what you have to say, but those aren’t the people you’re trying to connect with anyway.

 

How to get free traffic to your new mental health blog.

You want to have at least a handful of blog posts published before you start promoting. When people come to your blog, they need more to look at besides one lonely blog post. If you don’t promote your content and you don’t understand at least basic SEO you won’t be getting any significant traffic.

Your first blog post won’t be your best work. But, you’ll go back and update old posts to improve them over time. Don’t be afraid to hit publish, done is better than perfect and until you promote a post no one’s going to see it.

 

There are two ways to get free traffic to your blog:

  1. Search Engine Optimization
  2. Social Media

Before publishing, I highly recommend reading this post, which explains the basics of SEO. Many bloggers completely ignore SEO, and if you learn the very basics, then Google will know what your post is about. Google doesn’t automatically know what you’re writing about without some clear hints.

All you need is to install this simple WordPress SEO plugin, and it will give you step by step instructions for free. SEO is a longer game, and you won’t see instant results, but if you ignore it, you won’t get the results you deserve.

 

The fastest way to get traffic to a new blog is hands down Pinterest.

Then next in line is Facebook and Twitter. However, a Facebook post lasts about five hours, and a tweet gives you all of eighteen minutes.

Pinterest pins can last for YEARS. I like to work smarter, not harder, and if you try to be on all social media platforms, you’ll burn out within a couple of months. Start a Pinterest business account, so you get all the perks, and it signals to them you’re a creator, not a consumer.

I mean, there’s no sense in starting a blog if no one ever reads it, right.

That wouldn’t be any fun at all.

Once you have all of these things in place, then it’s time to monetize your blog.

 

How to make money from your blog.

Blogging is not an easy way to make money, and it can’t be your only motivation. This type of blog is truly for those who feel compelled to express themselves through writing. Find something you love to do and then find a way to make money from it.

If you don’t love to write, you won’t enjoy blogging, and if you don’t like it, you won’t make any money.

The most popular way to make passive income is with affiliate marketing.

 

Affiliate marketing is when you sell other people’s products for a commission.

Many bloggers are very successful at this.

It is a little tricky because you have to find products your audience is interested in buying and you won’t know what those are until you experiment and try different things.

One of the best places to start is with your hosting provider. You go through the process of setting up your blog and then share your experience by posting a review of the company. Every time a person clicks on your link and signs up, you get a commission.

Here are other easy ways to earn while you learn:

  • Try JVZoo, you’ll find all kinds of affiliate products, and they will train you on how to get results.
  • Sell tools like Sqribble, which can help you write an eBook to sell for 100% of the profit in literally minutes.
  • You can also sell products like WordPress plugins for SEO, try this one, it’s has a free version.
  • Another great way to earn a commission is by selling other bloggers products like Blog Simple Framework that teaches people how to blog.

With affiliate marketing, the possibilities are endless, but there are a few other things you might be interested in:

  • Running ads- these are more successful for high traffic websites since they pay per click, if you have a low traffic site, this isn’t the best way to monetize.
  • Sponsored posts- you can collaborate with companies or other bloggers to write articles on your blog to sell their products or services.
  • Selling your own products- this is the most popular choice, and even though you can’t think this far ahead, by the time you write between twenty and fifty blog posts, you’ll be ready to create your own products.

 

Start an email list and create an email funnel.

Building a list of raving fans is traffic that you own. It can’t be taken away from you, and you can sell to your subscribers over and over again.

It doesn’t have to be a big commitment, and you decide how often you want to email your list.

This post will tell you everything you need to know in one ultimate guide.

 

Here’s a list of things you’ll want to know and do when starting a blog:

 

In conclusion.

One of the most important things you can do when starting a mental health blog is to be your authentic self when you tell your story.

That’s what makes an excellent blog.

Keep it simple and easy to navigate, so people enjoy the experience.

Stick to the main topic and then branch out to other related topics as you grow. When you’re ready to create graphics, images, and products for your blog, try PicMonkey. It’s the only tool I use, and it does it all.

I hope this helps you decide whether this is something you want to pursue, and if it is, then I’m so excited for you. If you’re ready to purchase a domain name it’s included in this package for $3.95 per/month.

 

Need support?

If you need some help with whatever you’re struggling with, here is some 21st Century information about mental health.

(RTT) Rapid Transformational Therapy and Uncompromised Life with Marisa Peer is a lifeline for you. A personal session with an RTT Practitioner is like ten years of traditional therapy in an hour and a half. You can check out my homepage for more information or sign up for a session.

Read about RTT and how I started here.

Another at-home option for depression, PTSD, or C-PTSD you can connect with a professional therapist online.

Try Online-Therapy (20% off affiliate link).

You don’t have to be face-to-face. They’re available and on-call for you Monday-Friday, so you don’t have to wait for an appointment. It’s affordable, and you pay much less than seeing a therapist in person.

Post like this and narcissistic support groups are no substitute for therapy.