If you're feeling a bit down this week, it might have something to do with the winter blues.
The latter part of January is home to what has been dubbed the gloomiest Monday of the year -- and while the nomination is widely debated, there are a number of colliding factors that suggest Blue Monday might be a real phenomenon.
"A lot of the literature talks about the downfall and recovery period after the holiday season and it being smack in the middle of usually cold weather and people are starting to see big bills from Christmas coming in," Prairie Mountain Health community mental health nurse Tracy Ridgen said.
Ridgen adds that the lack of sunlight during this time of year can also wreak havoc on people dealing with seasonal affective disorder and clinical depression.
"The further you are from the equator, the higher the risk of winter blues and really we're pretty lucky in southwest Manitoba -- it's not as bad as it might be up in the north," she said. "But it doesn't mean that people here don't struggle."
To help quash the effects of the winter blues, PMH teamed up with the Brandon University Students' Union to put on an "uplifting" Monday night concert.
The event took place in the Elephant Room at BU and featured musical performances by Don Amero and Spirit Drums.
Last night's concert was just one event in a slate of activities hosted by BUSU for the university's mental health week.
"We've got a bunch of amazing people coming on the campus to spread the good word about mental health," BUSU interim president Nick Brown. "Everyone's stuck inside, everyone's stressed and we need to talk about mental health and ways to keep yourself happy this time of year."
On Monday, several therapy dogs from St. John Ambulance took residence in a corridor of the school and students were able to visit with and pet the pups in between classes.
"Having the dogs here is awesome ... you can come over and start petting them and you immediately feel relaxed," fourth-year psychology student Heather Armstrong said.
St. John Ambulance dog handler Valerie Andrey has been bringing her 10-year-old dog Wickett to community events for more than four years. Andrey says most people react positively when they see the dogs.
"It's like a big sigh of relief and it puts a smile on their face -- it's really cool," she said. "They're very calming and they just make you feel good."
Other mental health-related activities at BU this week include de-stress booths, free snacks, presentations by local health resources, a mental health awareness walk and a massage clinic. For a full schedule, visit busu.ca.
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