Opinion
It’s the Tuesday after Christmas holidays.
As I sit by my fireplace looking at my still-standing Christmas tree and Christmas decorations — and know that I unfortunately have to take them down, and soon — I can’t help but feel the dread that comes with January. I try to be positive (new year, new me, right?), but it’s a month I struggle with every year. And guess what? February is often even worse on my mental health.
Do you see the light at the end of the tunnel? Sometimes, I don’t.
I try to take a walk every day. It’s the one thing that especially helps me in the working-from-home scenario — getting out of the house, moving my legs, visiting my variety of animals outside. I’m fortunate to live down the road from my family, so these walks usually involve a visit from one or both of my parents (pending the time of the year). However, this deep freeze hasn’t even made me want to do that. I don’t care how much you bundle up, when it’s -38 degrees C before the windchill, nothing is enjoyable out there.
I try hard to be positive in a negative world, and maybe all of this is just a self-fulfilling prophecy, but I think part of all of this mess the world is in right now is acknowledging that there are a lot of us feeling this way. The farm shows we were looking forward to are quickly being cancelled, lockdowns are being announced, and the few things that we do to get us through this time of the year may not be available to us right now.
So this year, I’d really like you to reach out if you can. Please, send me an email. I’d love to hear from you. What do you do to get through this time of the year? What are some of the things you are doing to keep your head on straight? I’d be happy to compile a list for all of you that like to follow along. Let’s leave policy and politics alone for a minute, and make sure are brains are in check, too. But if they aren’t, that’s okay too. We put a lot of pressure on ourselves. As I’ve said before, I think we need to be okay with sitting in the mud sometimes. As long as you remember that no matter what (clichés aside), you are never alone.
And as a friendly reminder, there are resources out there — use them, please, actually use them.
- Crisis Services Canada
- Call: 1-833-456-4566
Text: 45645
- Call: 1-833-456-4566
- Centre for Suicide Prevention
- Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention
- Mental Health Line
- Call 211
- Kids Help Phone
- Call 1-800-668-6868
Sending warm hugs, all. We’ve got this.