WEYBURN - We all have the capacity to be compassionate, and make an emotional difference in the lives of our friends and family. Mental Health Week, which will be observed May 6 to 12 in 2024, has the theme “A Call to Be Kind: Because Compassion Connects Us All”.
There can be a lot of healing power in simple acts of compassion, as kindness is important to creating healthy and supportive social connections. There is also a focus on self-compassion, and ways to create compassionate classrooms and workplace cultures in your community.
One of the standard social greetings is ‘how are you?’, and we need to take the time to focus on the responses of our friends and neighbours. So many people respond ‘I am fine’ to this question, when in truth they are not feeling okay. There is often a worry that your troubles are too personal to share, or that you would not find someone to talk to, and so it becomes easier to fake a smile.
‘I am fine’ is a response to flit past how a person is actually feeling and turn the conversation onto something else. There is still social anxiety and doubt when it comes to being open and honest about our mental health, even when it comes to having day-to-day conversations.
How many of us have a confidante that we trust? How many of us feel comfortable having mental health conversations in our workplace? We spend so much time bottling up our emotions instead of expressing them, and so much energy trying to appeal to a standard of ‘being fine’ that is an unrealistic goal for anyone.
Of course, timing is important to when it comes to sharing your emotional state. It does take a lot of emotional intelligence to recognize the many emotions that we experience in life, and allowing ourselves to express those emotions is important to our mental heatlh.
I am not saying we should share intense emotions with strangers in the grocery aisle, but perhaps we should change the typical greeting - so that when people ask ‘how are you’, they are expressing their desire to truly know the answer, and take time to have compassion for another.
There are many ways to show your kindness in the community too. We are fortunate to have many community events and programs that are inclusive, and there are even a few Facebook groups that offer a ‘Helping Hand’ to those who are struggling in their lives. Recently, a group of kind and supportive people in Weyburn hosted a community potluck, and by working together this group showed their compassion to many local residents.
One could contact a long-term care home, or seniors home, and ask if there are volunteer reading programs available. There can be a sense of loneliness for people in those settings, since many do not have visitors, and there might be a chance to spread some kindness in a simple way.
It is important to make real connections, and find ways to be a support to the people in your life. Also remember to take time for yourself, and not spread your kindness out too much, otherwise you will feel unacknowledged and might experience a bit of burn-out. Sometimes you just need to step back from your volunteer efforts, and wait until you have a renewed passion.
Compassion is a natural activity, and taking moments for others can help strengthen our community, and open up new opportunities for social connections.
