Holiday blues: Mercy Health nurse practitioner shares tools to manage mental health
It can be tough to know how to navigate grief and show yourself some compassion during the holiday season.
According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, nearly 65% of individuals living with a mental illness felt their condition worsened in the weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day.
Nurse practitioner Brittaney Schmidt works at Mercy Health Recovery Services on Belmont Avenue.
She works one-on-one with patients in the community and said it’s normal to feel fluctuations of anxiety and depression during the holidays.
“There are very high expectations for the holidays, and I feel like social media is really big,” said Schmidt. “People that might not have as large of a family, they’re seeing others on Facebook having big elaborate holiday parties. Maybe they have some financial burden where they’re not able to do the same thing, or family lives out of town. There’s such an expectation that maybe some of our clients don’t aren’t able to fulfill, and that can be depressing.”
Schmidt said there’s a major fear of missing out on the holidays. When you’re on a budget, it’s hard to have enough money for gifts, trips and holiday parties.
Schmidt shared some tips she gives patients for how they can manage their mental health and any unwanted stress, anxiety or depression contributing to the holiday blues.
“If you’re the one that’s hosting the holiday and you’re feeling overwhelmed or you have anxiety because there’s a lot that you have to do, maybe reach out to some of your guests and family and see if they’d be willing to kind of help you out,” said Schmidt. “If you’re feeling lonely or isolated, try to reach out to people and find some support. If you’re able to volunteer, that gets you involved with others in the community maybe going through similar things that you’re going through. Avoiding social media or limiting it, if possible. I know that’s difficult.”
When they’re struggling with grief, Schmidt tells her patients to find ways to honor loved one’s memories and favorite traditions.
“Some of our older population may be feeling lonely, feeling left out trying to adapt to like a new normal if maybe their significant other has passed away or a family out of town,” said Schmidt.
Online-Solitaire.com conducted a survey of 4,000 respondents dwelling in single-person households.
One in five people in Ohio will plan on spending most of the holidays alone, according to the survey.
If you’re spending a holiday alone, make time to start a new tradition just for you.
Resources at Mercy Health
“There’s different IOP programs, which are intensive outpatient treatment programs, and they consist of group therapy and medication management,” said Schmidt. “The groups are three days a week and it’s really nice for varying diagnoses.”
Learn more about programs like New Start at Mercy Health, which is for drug and alcohol addiction treatment.
“You’re able to work with a counselor and provider to manage your medications, but you’re able to be around people going through similar things that you’re going through. There’s a lot of peer to peer interaction,” said Schmidt.
If you are struggling, call the National Suicide Hotline at 988.
If you are looking to connect confidentially with a trained crisis counselor, text GO to 741741.
NAMI mental health event on Monday
NAMI of Mahoning Valley is hosting a free expressive arts workshop on mental health wellness and healing.
It’s happening at 6 p.m. Monday at the Jewish Community Center of Youngstown. Space is limited, so registration is encouraged, but there’s no fee to participate.
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