2021 Was Janky AF

We’re nearly two years into this whole global pandemic thing, and I know we’re all feeling it; deep fatigue, one that has sunk into our souls at this point, and irritation- with ourselves, our loved ones, the world. We’ve all been faced with impossible choices regarding the health of ourselves and our families, work and school, and even knowing if it’s safe to hug our moms. The country feels more deeply divided than ever, and I’m sure I’m not alone in dreading the midterm elections. 

Here in Denver, driving aggressively on the interstate appears to have become a city-wide pastime, and I hear from friends in the hospitality sector that patron behavior has seen a decided trend towards “borderline-heathen.”  

To paraphrase an old Grateful Dead lyric: We’ve gone to hell in a bucket, and I don’t think anyone is enjoying the ride at this point. As we live through a seemingly-never ending public emergency where the goalposts marking “we’re finally through the worst of it” seem to move on a daily basis, our coping skills have been way too taxed, for way too long, and a lot of us are feeling and acting in ways we might not normally. Even if you’re not knocking a flight attendant's teeth out or assaulting your local school board member, we’re all still enduring an endless ride on the ol’ emotional rollercoaster.

In short: Everything feels like a mess right now, doesn’t it?

Personally, I’ve spent the last two years carefully guarding what precious little mental and emotional energy I’ve had available, trying to find some sort of balance between depression and hope. I’m incredibly lucky to have not been personally impacted by the loss of a friend or family member, but still- this shit has been HARD. My “coping” has looked like isolating myself from people, even beyond what was necessary. I haven’t kept up with my hobbies, or done the simple things I enjoy that keep the spark in my life alive. I certainly haven’t taken care of my body as I should have. All in all, it’s been a huge bummer- particularly in the second half of last year. I feel like the time just disappeared, and I have very little to show for it.

As I’ve entered the New Year, though, I’ve made the decision to try my best to re-engage with the world. I’m attending to my health- mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually- in a way that I haven’t in a long time. I actually feel pretty good again, and that’s huge. In addition to giving some energy back to my all-too-neglected friendships, I’m also going to try to add something useful back into the world again. I think it’s an important step to take when healing from being so completely down and out.

In that vein, please tell me- what have you been struggling with through all of this? I’m planning to do some blogging and videos about a few different topics, offering education as well as solutions like lifestyle and diet tips, flower essences, herbs and supplement information where applicable, as well as any magic tricks I’ve learned in my almost-twenty-years of Clinical Herbalist-ing and working with mental health. Insomnia (and not being able to get your brain to ever just *shut the hell up*) is something that I’ve heard a LOT of people struggling with, so I think I’m going to start there. Other topics I’m considering are anxiety and depression, creating and holding healthy boundaries, dealing with transition and change without losing your mind (any more than you may have already…), supporting kids emotional wellbeing and resilience through all of this madness, navigating pandemic-worn relationships of all kinds, something around creating good habits, and maybe even finding your path if you have decided to change course in your career or life. The world is our oyster, and I’m open to suggestions.

How can I help YOU??