A vibrant, fair, and regenerative future is possible — not when thousands of people do climate justice activism perfectly but when millions of people do the best they can . - Xiye Bastida   The first organized Earth Day was April 22, 1970.  Since then, the  Earth Day Network  has mobilized environmental awareness and activism to protect our planet. This Earth Day, people of all backgrounds and generations are called in solidarity, kindness and action to show their care for Pl

According to statistics gathered by RAINN , which is our “nation’s largest anti-sexual violence organization and operator of the National Sexual Assault Hotline,” an estimated 443,635 people ages 12 and older experience sexual violence each year in the United States.  Over half of these victims are ages 18-34. While statistics show that 1 in 6 women in our country have experienced attempted or completed rape in their lifetime, 1 in 33 men have also experienced attempted or co

April is Autism Acceptance Month! For a primer on this topic, check out the post written in 2021 for LGC by clicking here ! Although autism has a large breadth of published material including what it is and how to support our friends and family who identify with autism, here are some key points to help us lean in as allies and supports to celebrate the contributions of Autistic individuals. First, according to the Autistic Self Advocacy Network , “Autism is a developmental di

At times, through bouts of gloom, existential overwhelm or bearing the weight of global injustices and daily stressors, we may question—how anyone could find joy these days? With a shift of perspective on the meaning of joy, we might actually realize it’s been with us all along.  Poet, essayist and educator Ross Gay  offers: “joy is the mostly invisible, the underground union between us, you and me, which is, among other things, the great fact of our life and the lives of eve

Sometimes in relationships, we can get busy taking care of things, managing responsibilities, navigating logistics and responding quickly to what life brings. And over time, things can start to feel a little heavy, a little distant or just slightly off. The connection may still be there, but it can feel harder to access. A lot of energy might be dedicated to keeping things moving and there is less room to actually experience each other. Finding a way back to that feeling of c

Welcome to the next installation in the exploratory series of Mental Health Themes in Music!   Today, we’re analyzing the new wave rock track, “Making Plans for Nigel,” released as the lead single on XTC’s 1979 album, Drums And Wires . While it was originally intended as commentary on overbearing parenting styles, it can be applied to similar  interpersonal contexts. Let’s take a look! “We're only making plans for Nigel We only want what's best for him We're only making plans

How can we better understand our own needs?  The hierarchy of needs is mostly attributed to Abraham Maslow, who published this theory of psychology in 1943 after spending six weeks with the Blackfoot (Siksika) Community. The concepts were then converted into a visually-digestible pyramid in the 1960’s: So how can we apply this theory to our lives? Prioritize basic needs . We all need a place to lay our heads at night, food, water and air to breathe. If you find that you are m

March is Self-Harm Awareness Month - Let’s open up the conversation to help de-stigmaize the experience and open doors for support! For a primer on this topic, check out the post I wrote a few years back by clicking here ! The main change to this post is that the contacts for support have developed to be the following: Text “HOME” to 741741 from anywhere in the United States – this 24/7, free, confidential text crisis line provides a live, trained volunteer Crisis Counselor t

Did you know that 1 in 20  individuals who menstruate experience highly disruptive hormonal symptoms before their period?  Despite this, premenstrual disorders, including Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD), are often overlooked and training in many healthcare professions is far from ubiquitous. Fortunately, the first step to increasing overall awareness is education! According to The International Association for Premenstrual Disorders (IAPMD) , “ PMDD is a cyclical hormo

The Year of the Horse. On February 17th, people around the world will be celebrating Lunar New Year - more commonly known as Chinese New Year. It’s a time of the year where many Asian countries observe the change of the new year using a lunar calendar versus the Gregorian calendar used by most other countries. Celebrations can last up to 16 days, but only the first 7 days are considered a public holiday (February 17th–February 23rd) in some Asian countries. To read more about