GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KREX) – Therapist Dotti Thurner Martin and her colleagues at Porch Light Health in Grand Junction are spreading the word that help is here for the community, as they’re seeing ongoing political turmoil across the nation causing a rise in depression, withdrawal, and anxiety here at home.
“The status of our political climate and our community culture that we’re living in causes a great deal of uncertainty for people,” explains Martin. “When we have uncertainty and unrest, anxiety creeps up because everything’s kind of coming in at us. And we just don’t know what to do with all of that.”
According to Martin, reasons for a spike in anxiety can range from job insecurity to the economy. Issues such as ICE operations and political unrest, even when happening in other states, are impacting people hundreds of miles away.
Martin recalls, “Some of the conversations that I’ve had with some of the clients that come here have revolved around the sense of not feeling safe or fear of going somewhere and experiencing something that they don’t have control over. [It] isn’t really directed to them, but they’re now a part of it.”
These situations, says Martin, have caused some to become reclusive.
“They’ve kind of retreated and done more of a social withdrawal from certain activities in the community and feeling safer to just stay home, out of the mix of it,” she said.
But the best remedy to cope with an uncertain world, according to Martin, is not to retreat from it. Instead, reach out to a trusted friend, emergency services or your neighborhood mental health clinic.
“We’ll help you get to where you need to be. If it’s not here, we’ll help you get where you got to go,” Martin said.
More information on mental health treatment can be found on the Porch Light website.
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