Captain Janeway would have attended the Changemaker Wellbeing Summit
For the first time in at least 15 years, I scheduled an appointment with a therapist last week.
I’ve done enough mental health work on myself in the past two decades to recognize that I needed it. I wasn’t sleeping. I was snapping at family members. I was finding myself listless and unable to conjure up the usual enthusiasm for things I love.
At first I thought it was my ADHD, well, ADHDing.
But numerous outside stressors in the past several months, including the death of a close family member, brought it all to the forefront.
I was lucky in that I pretty much instantly bonded with my new therapist – that doesn’t always happen – over our shared love of Star Trek (Janeway is the best captain but Deep Space Nine is the better show and I will die inside this warp drive) and other geeky things.
The first session is always a bit of a getting-to-know-you so there wasn’t a lot of time to vent, but I certainly felt lighter when it was all done.
The current state of the world is driving a lot of anxiety and pressure for people, and I know it’s affecting me, too. When your job requires you to stay informed about the state of the world, it’s a harrowing thing.
And when your job not only requires you to take care of yourself but also to support the mental health of the people you employ or supervise, it’s another level.
Non-profits know this better than most – working on the front lines and also bereft of robust resources for their clients and themselves.
It’s part of the reason why the Changemaker Wellbeing Summit is our signature event, and it’s happening this week.
And until we have a Star Trekian society where poverty is eliminated and mental health treated as a serious health issue, it’s a place where I firmly believe every non-profit should be.
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