Managing Mental Health in 2021

I see a naturopath that I love. She listens to me and addresses my ailments in such a holistic way that it’s shocking. Simply because I’ve grown so used to the ‘head down, tell me what’s wrong in 5 seconds so I can write you a prescription and leave’, tactic that a lot of our health care system operates under. Where the focus is on addressing the symptoms of an issue instead of the source, meaning it never actually gets healed. I’ve found that oddly similar to how we’ve been handling the COVID crisis but diving deeper than that, how we’ve been handling each other…

When everything seems to be important, but there’s zero band with available for it, how do we keep reaching into a dry well to make sure our loved ones have water to drink? How do I focus on songs or blog posts about frivolous things, when we’re constantly reminded how fragile the things around us are? Our health, our need for community, our ability to trust our neighbor to do the right thing for the greater good are all things that have taken up so.much.space. in all our souls.

 Worrying about whether my child will be able to safely go to school, yet I still have to wake up and feed the cat, move my body, and answer emails. My heart is breaking for the people of Afghanistan who are fearing for their lives, yet I still need to make sure my family eats dinner. How do we carry the weight of the world, while being grateful for what’s right in front of me?

My friend told me at the beginning of the pandemic that “we all need so much more from each other than we have to give.” That has run through my head countless times - When my expectations weren’t met or when I sense friendships shifting or my loved ones are overwhelmed with grief…we are all doing the best we can.

If everyone is running on empty, how do we show up for each other and carry each other’s burdens? How do we love our enemies when so many people around us are being vilified and in our fear and arrogance, choosing to fight one another instead of the actual problem.

I’ve asked these hard questions and don’t have any good answers so what is it that I/we CAN do? I can play with my kids. Or send them to my parents house. I can send a friend a funny meme and tell them I’m thinking about them. I can see a therapist. I can cry. I can pray. I can search for the heart of the matter and throw as much love at it as I can muster. Because no matter how cynical I get or how depleted I am, I have to believe that love is greater than and always the best choice. And hopefully the hardships of this time will actually be galvanizing in the long run since (especially for those moms out there) we can understand what one another has been through. And there’s no shame in seeking help if you need it - we all do!

 So while I’m writing this to find some outlet for me to sort through all that we face, I hope you find moments to refuel you, to (for those who are lucky enough to do so) take time to not stress about the state of the world and instead go mow your neighbor’s lawn, bring coffee to a friend, or hold a door for somebody. Those are at least the little things we can control to address and lift up the heart, the true source of most of our problems.