Do you ever get the feeling you’re in a very stupid or clumsy version of the Matrix? Or a low-budget simulation that just doesn’t quite have all the bugs worked out yet?
Every other week for me, but especially so after a recent bout of déjà vu in Whistler.
Last summer, I wrote about unidentified drones buzzing overhead in my neighbourhood, conspiring with other life stressors to send me into the forest in search of solace.
As the old cliché goes, history doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes, and this week, my stressed-out paranoia was again set alight when a dark, unofficial-looking van loaded up with high-tech camera gear and out-of-province plates passed me in my neighbourhood, inspiring immediate thoughts of the daylight, neighbourhood-casing scene from Home Alone (me of course being Kevin McCallister slowly chased by the burglars in this scenario. Where is a nativity scene when you need one?).
And of course, when the Resort Municipality of Whistler responded to my queries about the strange van, it was all above-board (apparently a municipal contractor scanning roads for a pavement management project, who said they will ensure future vans are clearly marked with decals. In my defence, the police did agree it was suspicious, “especially with the spray-bombed paint job.”)
So if you saw this van and, like me, are a paranoid neurotic, you can stand down.
The déjà vu in this case came when I excitedly sat down to write about my experience with the creepy surveillance van; how work and life stress can conspire to drag us down; and how I sought solace in the natural space around me… and then realized I wrote almost the exact same thing less than 12 months prior.
But when you work at a newspaper for any extended stretch of time, this is not an uncommon occurrence. Days and weeks bleed together into months, then years; assignments pile up and compound on one another; before long it’s all one big tangled ball of wordplay, notifications and emails.
Do it long enough, and you don’t have to read more than a few words of an email to know if it’s a legitimate story idea or another hackneyed PR or sales pitch clumsily disguised as vital news.
But then, sometimes some gems sneak in with the advertising, like when a national chain of pharmacies (which shall remain nameless for our purposes) sent in late March a helpful tipsheet for dealing with trade-war anxiety.
It suggested things like maintaining physical activity, practicing mindfulness, prioritizing sleep, limiting caffeine and alcohol, and staying connected with friends and family as good ways to curb anxiety and stress—all objectively good things. Then it subtly shifted the conversation to the possibility of being prescribed medicine, which, hey, you could get at this chain of pharmacies!
No pressure, but that sure is convenient.
Of course, we shouldn’t need advertising phishing emails to remind us to take care of ourselves.
Often we just need to do a better job of slowing things down, and listening to the very obvious messages our bodies are trying to send us. Like during last month’s federal election, when I realized my nagging, persisting, uncomfortable acid reflux symptoms may be less physical and more due to stress and anxiety.
After some overdue introspection and a couple hours in the sun on the docks at Barking Bay, taking deep, deliberate breaths I had neglected for weeks, or possibly months, I resolved to take a vacation.
As much as we like to pretend the daily stresses of our lives and jobs—no matter the industry or trade—don’t affect us, the unseen compounding effects can sometimes be surprising.
And according to research from Abacus Data in late February, our current political and economic landscape is wreaking havoc on the mental health of Canadians, with nearly half the population (42 per cent) reporting increased anxiety.
Rising cost of living was the primary source (52 per cent), followed by political tensions and uncertainty with the U.S. (38 per cent), personal challenges (27 per cent), and global events (25 per cent).
Concerns varied across demographics, with older Canadians more worried about political tensions, younger Canadians struggling with personal challenges, and those in lower-income households most concerned by the cost of living.
The Canadian Mental Health Association marked Mental Health Week this month, from May 5 to 11, during which it encouraged people across Canada to “look beyond the surface and see the whole person,” according to the CMHA website. “By embracing honesty and vulnerability, we open the door to deeper connections and the mental health benefits that come with it. In doing so, we can create a ripple effect of courage and understanding across the country.”
We’re all on our own path, fighting our own battles, writing our own stories. Whatever your challenges, help is available in Whistler—head to mywcss.org for more info.
