Not everyone is holly jolly at Christmas

It's easy to assume that everyone is happy and cheerful and full of joy around the holidays. Like the health professionals in the stock photo above.  Don't they look cheery? No. They don't.  Because the fact is that a lot of people suffer from depression in Montana.  And a lot of time it really rears it's ugly head around the holidays. Ariana's ex Pete Davidson has everyone concerned right own.

If you're already having trouble coping, all the pressure of of the holidays could be the final straw for some.  Montana is still #1 for suicides, per capita.

Theories I saw floated around on Facebook (a world full of experts, right?) over the weekend include lack of daylight in the winter and low vitamin D levels. Others think that easy access to firearms increases our suicide rate. A few think booze and/or drugs are to blame. I think we can all agree that access to mental help is really the biggest issue.  Being told you have to wait two weeks to see a shrink, when you're in a dark place doesn't help.  When the only way you can get access to a mental health profession is to admit yourself to the ER... that seems to me like a problem.

I don't have answers. I don't know where the funding is supposed to come from.  But we really need to see what can be done to get Montana off the #1 spot for suicides. If you know of someone who seems to be having a tough time right now, reach out to them.

Next time,

Michael