“Healing Yourself is Connected with Healing Others” Y. Ono
May is Mental Health Awareness Month. It is a month to promote awareness and reduce stigma around mental illness and to offer support and resources to those with lived experience of mental illness, and their supporters. CMHA, the Canadian Mental Health Association, is honouring mental health week with the theme of “Unmasking Mental Health,” exploring the value of sharing one’s story and the barriers to talking openly about our mental health.
This month is also a call to action to improve mental health services to meet the growing need. There are many gaps in mental health system and, based on my experience supporting people with mental illness to access resources, many people struggle to find help. In honour of Mental Health Awareness Month, I am posting free posts in May to share part of this blogging journey with more people. 🌍🤝💚🎨🖌️🧠
Driving through downtown Victoria I see the heartbreaking conditions of people who are homeless. Many, if not all, have a mental illness and substance use disorder. Many of these people have experienced layers of past and current trauma. I find this painful that we don’t make it a priority to find safe shelter and other services for them. Any of us with severe mental illness could end up homeless when ill if we don’t have adequate support. I have been so fortunate with all the support I have received throughout my life, but many people do not have the same safety net. I recently read an online article where one man who was homeless in Canada was housed in shipping container home, and he spoke to how meaningful it was to finally feel safe. Safety is a basic need. How can anybody get stability in their mental health and substance use if they don’t have a foundation of basic needs? We have to use creativity and resources to give people access to basic human rights.
Throughout the month of May I write on theme of “Recovery from the Past.” I chose this theme because it has been such a part of my personal journey lately and I can see its invaluable benefits for my mental health.
This post outlines my flow for this next month. It is a transition blog post, aimed at getting people to reflect on the importance of Mental Health Awareness Month and what we can do in our own lives, in our family and friend groups, and in our communities to promote mental health.
May 1st I will explore the history of art making and its relationship to the treatment of mental illness. Most people don’t know this interesting history of how art therapy became a complementary treatment for people with lived experience of mental illness.
May 8th I will honour the role of trauma in mental health, where research is finally catching up to the understanding that trauma can play a significant role in diagnosed mental illness. I am a huge supporter of counselling for those with lived experience of mental illness. Not only can it deal with unaddressed trauma, it also can be a crucial way to develop resilience and resources for people in mental health recovery.
Mid-month, a milestone birthday for me, I will reflect on adulthood and the continual unfolding of one’s own recovery journey. I contrast how I felt as a young woman to how I feel now. I am reminded of a contradiction that has been unfolding in my writing: while holding onto values and identity is crucial for recovery, it is also true that we are always growing and evolving with the world around us. Each post I write is changing my understanding of mental illness, calling me to see complexities while I fight to try to hold onto truths so that I can provide others (and myself) concrete ways of healing.
May 23rd I tackle a subject that could be a book unto itself: forgiveness and mental health. This post talks about self-forgiveness for the impact of our mental illness on others. It also talks about forgiving others who may not have showed up the way we needed them to. Ultimately it is a post on developing deeper compassion for the impact of mental illness.
I close the month with a piece exploring how the first year typically looks for me after an episode. This is such a vulnerable time with so many feelings and challenges. This post is about sending some care out to those with lived experience who are currently in this stage and for those who are their supporters. We can learn a lot about our recovery from the initial stages after an episode.
Through looking backwards, I notice how it grounds me in the present. If I can understand and make some peace with the past, it is easier to navigate my life. Shedding off layers of grief, allows my body to heal more deeply. It also renews for me a commitment to my creativity and other recovery self-care practices that are central to my healing.
For those of you just reading my posts for the first time, here are a few guidelines on using the therapeutic arts for personal growth:
- Simply put, the therapeutic arts are engaging in creative activities that promote healing.
- When completing a therapeutic arts activity, you must decide what you can work with on your own and what triggers/trauma that you need support with.
- Therapeutic art is not about making perfect art – it is about the process not the product. It is important to try to free yourself as best as possible from the perfectionist part of yourself.
- You do not need to share your therapeutic art with anyone unless you feel that it would be helpful. I do not share all of my therapeutic art on this blog. Obviously, I am sharing a lot about me to heal and counteract the stigma and shame around mental illness, but we all have our own boundaries on what we share with others.
Okay, are you ready to dive into making some art?🎨
Therapeutic Arts Activity
I am keeping this transition week activity simple and flexible. Create a reminder (or intention) around Mental Health Awareness Month. This could be as simple as creating an outgoing e-mail signature with a mental health quote, to checking out what mental health awareness events are happening in your community.
Materials
- Anything you need for this activity
There is only one question for this post:
How can you honour Mental Health Awareness Month?
I am looking forward to travelling this next month with you. So many of you have been my personal supporters, with front-row seats on both the challenges and the beautiful moments of my life. I am so very thankful for all the love and care you’ve shown me.
❤️❤️❤️With care and kindness, Meegan
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