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For those who suffer mood disorders and mental illness, this year has especially been a nightmare and to add to that, the holidays often mean the unwanted gift of seasonal depression.
Kelli Foulkrod, a transpersonal psychotherapist and trauma-informed yoga instructor based in Austin, has seen an increase in people coming to her 10-year private practice for help this winter.
Foulkrod says that the isolating strategies associated with COVID-19 have increased suicide rates, domestic abuse, homicides and child abuse.
"We are social creatures; we thrive in communities, we thrive in connection," Foulkrod said. "It is almost like air and water, how imperative it is for human beings to be in connection with one another."
A study from the National Alliance of Mental Illness showed 64% of people with mental illness report the holidays make their conditions worse. And this holiday season is like no other, with mental health statistics reaching alarming numbers before the holiday season.
(CDC)
According to a Centers for Disease Control study conducted this summer, 10.7% of adults seriously considered suicide during the previous 30 days, a number that was almost twice as much as in 2018 when the count was 4.3%. The study shows the prevalence of depressive disorder was approximately four times what had been reported in the second quarter of 2019, going from 6.5% to 24.3%.
Additionally, the Disaster Distress Helpline, a sub-network of the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, saw an 890% increase in call volume in April 2020 compared with April 2019, USA Today reported.
Wendy Salazar, a practice manager at Austin Travis County Integral Care, sees the increase in people reaching out for help as a positive sign indicative of an awareness that the public has regarding the importance of mental health.
"We're seeing an increase in calls to our helpline because folks are really connecting with 'Hey, you know what? It's important for me to take care of how I am feeling, there's a lot of benefit to that,'" says Salazar, who notes that over the last eight months there has been a 19% increase in calls to the helpline.
Lloyd Weatherspoon III, a rehabilitation specialist at Integral Care, notes the difficulty that the pandemic has had on those who rely upon the routine of getting together for the mutual benefits of group therapy.
"Say we have people who are in a small group therapy. We can't do group therapy and we can't do group activity because of COVID, so it is hard or more challenging for those who are used to getting together once a week or daily for activity at a mental health center, so lack of communication for people like that makes it difficult."
Although a lot can be done by Zoom and telehealth, not everyone has access to a smartphone or a laptop, and so an actual home visit—replete with full protection gear, gloves and a plastic shield—is required.
Weatherspoon says that this time of year, when seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, hits, the usual holiday relief of family get-togethers might not be an option due to COVID-19, and this of course will be a problem for those suffering from depression.
"It is one thing to have SAD if you're dealing with mental health issues on your own. It's another thing to do that and not be able to have the actual physical contact and see your family, right? So that is a challenge for some of them," he says.
Zoom calls became a necessity for people to connect for both business and fun. While using a screen to connect with others isn't the same for the human nervous system, Foulkrod says, it is a major step toward dealing with the anxiety that comes from isolation in an uncertain time.
"We're at nine months of this and so we're seeing—at least in my opinion—the peak of a mental health crisis," she says. "We are collectively in trauma, this is a traumatic experience. I've never done this before, nobody knows how to do this, but since we don't know how long this is going to last I do encourage people to find creative ways to hang out with people."
And when you can't be with people physically, she suggests spending time in nature, journaling, learning a new skill, and filling the mind with a creative outlet until things return to a better normal.
"A giant lesson for people to realize is what we actually have control over is our responses to the uncontrollability of life," Foulkrod says.
Deann Acton, an art therapist trained in dialectical behavioral therapy, can personally attest to the power of creative work in her own life.
"Art is definitely my barometer for how well I am doing," she says. "So as long as I am making art I am probably okay."
Acton has, like Foulkrod, noticed an increase in her clientele recently due to COVID 19-related stress, and notes that some people who had moved out of therapy have come back.
In a time when getting together for a dinner party or a night out may be out of the question, the assuaging aspects of creating art becomes an ever more attractive way for people to center themselves.
She says the act of not thinking about anything but the art being created is an active meditation. Acton, a cancer survivor whose own illustrations of sea monsters helped her to understand her feelings regarding the disease, says art therapy is about using art to express oneself.
"When people … make art with me they always leave feeling better than when they came in. Naturally, it's a pretty healing thing to be able to create something," Acton says.
Acton counts baking, crocheting and holiday gift-making as therapeutic acts, and suggests that people go outside and take pictures of interesting objects in their yard or put together a vision board collage of what they feel grateful for.
Acton emphasizes learning ways to accept a situation rather than be negatively affected by it, as exceptionally useful during the pandemic.
"It is all about teaching coping strategies; how do you accept a moment that you'd rather not accept?" Acton says. "Yeah, this sucks, so you can be woeful about it and just be angry all day that it's happening … or you can just accept this is the now, so what do I do with this now? How do I like lean into the now that it is and like figure out ways to have a good experience in whatever moment I can, given that this is what it is right now?"
Austin residents feeling the mental stress associated with the pandemic should call the COVID-19 Health and Wellness Support Line which will provide short-term counseling and support to Austin workers and families whose mental health has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.- Telemedicine serves Austin patients amid pandemic - austonia ›
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Popular
After two years of no in-person events, Austin festival South by Southwest has agreed to give 50% of ownership to P-MRC, a Los Angeles company that controls publishing operations for Rolling Stone and Billboard.
The media venture was founded in 2020 and is part-owned by Jay Penske, racer Roger Penske's son and head of Penske Racing and Penske Media.
The move comes after the COVID-19 pandemic left the festival with two years worth of hemorrhaging funds. SXSW organizers were left scrambling for solutions in March 2020 when the city of Austin canceled the festival at the onset of the pandemic. One-third of the festival's 175 year-round employees were laid off, and the festival ran a shortened virtual event in 2021.
SXSW CEO and co-founder Roland Swenson said in a statement that the company is grateful to get aid when they need it most and that they are now looking to the future.
"It has been an incredibly tough period for small businesses, SXSW included," Swenson said. "When Jay Penske approached us with an interest in becoming a partner, it was a true lifeline for us. Both of our companies share a passion for producing high-quality content that helps shape modern culture, so this feels like a natural alliance."
Both of Austin's big-name festivals are now in the hands of out-of-town buyers. In 2014, homegrown festival Austin City Limits was bought in part by LiveNation, who took 51% ownership in Austin live promoter C3 Presents.
.@MLS Commissioner @thesoccerdon and @AustinFC's Minister of Culture and part-owner Matthew @McConaughey will discuss how the League is deepening fan engagement, and how Clubs are becoming cultural mainstays at 10am on Channel 3. ⚽ #SXSW pic.twitter.com/2XFj4XEdwL
— SXSW (@sxsw) March 18, 2021
While SXSW was still online-only this year, it was aided in part by big-name guests such as Matthew McConaughey, Willie Nelson, Chance the Rapper and Bill Hader.
The fest has captured the essence of Austin arts and culture for 34 years, and it doesn't plan on stopping now. With P-MRC by its side, SXSW said it plans on keeping its unique identity but expanding operations as it prepares for an in-person celebration next spring.
"Since 1987, SXSW has been the world's premier festival centered at the convergence of tech, media, film, and music," Penske said. "Today SXSW continues to be one of the most recognized brands for empowering creative talent and bringing together the brightest creators of our time. As part of this significant investment, we plan to build upon SXSW's incredible foundation while extending the platform further digitally and assisting Roland and his incredible team to bring their vision to even greater heights."
With their future restored, SXSW's newest slogan rings truer than ever: "See you next year at SXSW!"
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APD captures suspect of domestic violence killing Stephen Broderick. (Austin Police Department/Twitter)
Stephen Broderick is now in police custody for a suspected domestic violence incident that killed three in northwest Austin on Sunday.
After initially being called an active shooting incident, joint local law enforcement and more than 75 FBI agents proceeded with an almost day-long manhunt with three helicopters and on-ground teams for former Travis County deputy Broderick. Police captured him after a 911 caller reported a suspicious man walking along U.S. 290, where he was taken into custody.
Police believe the victims, who have been identified as two Hispanic women and one Black man, knew their assailant. A child was involved but is now safely in police custody. Two of the victims have been identified as former and current Elgin ISD students: Alyssa Broderick and Willie Simmons III.
The school district released a statement offering its condolences to the families. Alyssa was enrolled until October 2020 and played on the basketball team. Simmons was a senior at Elgin High School where he was captain of the football team and had been recruited to play football at the University of North Texas.
Travis County Sheriff Sally Hernandez released the following statement on the incident: "I'm truly heartbroken that a former Travis County Sheriff's Office Deputy is the suspect in such a horrific incident. TCSO is standing by to provide any, and all assistance we can to the families of the victims in their time of need. I'm proud of the integrity and professionalism shown by the men and women of TCSO, APD and other law enforcement agencies, who worked tirelessly throughout the night to locate Stephen Broderick. I'm especially grateful to the vigilant citizen who called 911 after seeing Broderick, and to the Manor PD officers and TCSO deputies who took him into custody this morning."
APD @Chief_Chacon provides updated media briefing in relation to Great Hills Trail incident. - PIO8 https://t.co/47siNWhARI
— Austin Police Department (@Austin_Police) April 18, 2021
During a press briefing at 4:45 p.m. on Sunday, Interim Police Chief Joe Chacon said law enforcement was on the scene for several hours investigating the incident with 41-year-old Broderick.
"We're very sorry that obviously this has happened and we continue to try and locate this individual, we are transitioning from a search in this area to a fugitive search and those efforts will continue until this person is located," Chacon said. "I don't want anyone to think that we're packing up and going home. We're going to continue to look for this individual because he continues to pose a threat to this community."
#texasshooting #masshooting Arboretum shooting Austin. pic.twitter.com/SkIsgDoYHt
— Jamie Hammonds (@jamie_hammonds5) April 18, 2021
This story has been updated at 8 a.m. Monday to include the latest information.
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Formula 1 is returning to Florida for the first time since 1959, announcing that the brand-new Miami Grand Prix will join the calendar in 2022 and Austin will no longer be the only F1 race in the U.S.
Held at the Hard Rock Stadium complex in Miami Gardens, this will be the first race in the Sunshine State in 62 years. With a new track setup, F1 will loop the stadium, home of the NFL's Miami Dolphins.
Excited for @F1 @f1miami @HardRockStadium - a Global Entertainment Destination. This event will bring opportunities for so many and will be world-class. Thank you to @gregmaffei #chasecarey #stefanodomenicali @MayorRHarris @Ogilbert @CommishDiaz @MayorDaniella pic.twitter.com/n6dDDD1cPX
— Tom Garfinkel (@TomGarfinkel) April 18, 2021
The new 3.36 mile circuit has 19 corners, three straights and potential for three DRS zones, with expected top speeds of 198 mph.
Now with two races in the U.S., F1 President Stefano Domenicali said they will avoid having back-to-back events by keeping the Miami Grand Prix separate from the U.S. Grand Prix, which is held at Austin's Circuit of the Americas.
The date of the race has yet to be confirmed, though Domenicali said he expects the first race in a 10-year deal to take place in the second quarter of 2022. Austin's race will take place on Oct. 24 this year.
"The USA is a key growth market for us, and we are greatly encouraged by our growing reach in the U.S. which will be further supported by this exciting second race," Domenicali said.
Miami will mark the 11th race location in the U.S. since the Championship began in 1950: Circuit of The Americas in Austin; Dallas, Texas; Indianapolis, Indiana; Sebring, Florida; Riverside, California; Watkins Glen, New York; Long Beach, California; Las Vegas, Nevada; Detroit, Michigan and Phoenix, Arizona. COTA was first opened in 2012.
Domenicali said F1 will be working with the FIA and the Hard Rock Stadium to leave a lasting impact on the community: discounted tickets for residents, a program to support local businesses and a STEM education program through F1 in schools.
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