When we think of the spring and summer months, we often think of the return of longer days, spending more time outside, and being more social. People are often grateful for winter to be over and for the return of long sunny warm days. Yesterday my family was walking together and so many people were… Continue reading Seasons of Ambiguity: Mental Health Challenges in the Spring and Summer Months
Tag: therapeutic arts
Healing with Haiku: How Poetry Can Help with Stormy Days
โI am not afraid of storms for I am learning how to sail my ship.โ โ Amy March, from Little Women Island View Beach, February 2026 The week before last felt a bit stormy. My sleep was off and everything felt more stressful. I like to turn to nature for a sense of perspective and… Continue reading Healing with Haiku: How Poetry Can Help with Stormy Days
Intuitive Mental Health Recovery: Letting Your Body, Your Feelings, and Your Creativity Lead You to Health
โWhen you reach the end of what you should know, you will be at the beginning of what you should sense.โโ Kahlil Gibrรกn, Sand and Foam Dear Readers, Today I am tired. In a world that favours doing, and being productive, it is hard to feel tired. I have a restlessness that feels better if I am… Continue reading Intuitive Mental Health Recovery: Letting Your Body, Your Feelings, and Your Creativity Lead You to Health
Letter to my Readers
"All journies have secret destinations of which the traveller is unaware." ~ Martin Buber Dear Readers, โญ โญ โญ โญ โญ Next week on October 10th is World Mental Health Day - the "birthday" of this blog series. I am so thankful for each of you who have supported me as I have shared my… Continue reading Letter to my Readers
Mental Health Milestones: Celebrations In Your Recovery Journey
Your mental health recovery is a journey of self-discovery and resilience ~QuoteHive Photo by Javon Swaby: https://www.pexels.com/photo/selective-focus-photography-of-sparkler-1697902/ I am going on holiday this week and next and so I am posting this early. The holiday is a celebration of a milestone birthday and also a celebration of almost a year's worth of blogging mapping out… Continue reading Mental Health Milestones: Celebrations In Your Recovery Journey
World Suicide Prevention Month
"Your life matters"~Unknown Photo by Sydney Sang: https://www.pexels.com/photo/suicide-awareness-month-yellow-ribbon-display-33699793/ This post was challenging to write. Just thinking about suicide is triggering for me. It is hard to look at the alarming rates of suicide, to think of people I know who have taken their lives and to remember times when I felt suicidal. For many people… Continue reading World Suicide Prevention Month
Spiritual Tools for Mental Health
โThe Wound is the place where Light enters you.โ ~ Rumi Photo by Meegan Simpson-Cooke The word spirituality is used so often that it sometimes loses its meaning and significance. It can be associated with ego, as in how spiritual someone can be. Also, there are many people who do not believe in a higher… Continue reading Spiritual Tools for Mental Health
Work and Resiliency: How Mental Health and Work Are Closely Connected
โA culture of wellness at work begins with understanding and supporting mental health.โ ~ joyfulthroughitall.com Photo by Alesia Kazantceva on Unsplash Undoubtedly work can be important for mental health. We derive a lot from working whether it is paid or unpaid. An article on the Canadian Mental Health Association website says this about the benefits of… Continue reading Work and Resiliency: How Mental Health and Work Are Closely Connected
The Seasons of Mental Illness
Embrace the seasons and cycles in life. There is magic in change. ~ Bonnie Ware Photo by Lorenzo Hamers on Unsplash When I went back and looked at the time of year my episodes occured, a pattern emerged. I was more likely to have an episode in spring, summer and early in the fall. I… Continue reading The Seasons of Mental Illness
Psychiatric Medications: The Gifts and the Challenges
Photo by Michaล Parzuchowski on Unsplash Two quotes today for two different persectives on psychiatric medications... โBecause drugs have become so profitable, major medical journals rarely publish studies on nondrug treatments of mental health problems. Practitioners who explore treatments are typically marginalized as โalternative.โ Studies of nondrug treatments are rarely funded unless they involve so-called… Continue reading Psychiatric Medications: The Gifts and the Challenges