Navigating Mental Health as a Parks and Recreation Professional

The last year has been a tough one for me personally. I don't know your specific story, but I'd guess we can all relate to navigating the ups and downs of life, either personally or professionally. I knew I needed to make some changes to help myself. Over the years, I've given several presentations on the health and wellness benefits of parks and recreation, but this past year I realized I hadn't been practicing what I preached. I hope this blog will help others who might be experiencing the same thing with some lessons I’ve learned, while knowing you’re not alone.

Asking for help. I realized a long time ago that I can't do it all on my own, even though I sometimes wish I could. It's unrealistic to think I can, and honestly, unhealthy to try. For me, asking for help came down to two things: therapy and a personal board of directors. I'd avoided therapy for about ten years, mostly because I was worried about the stigma around mental health. If I can push past that, anyone can. There's zero shame in it. I started earlier this year, and it's helped me process my thoughts, reframe my mindset, and build healthier habits that touch every part of my life. I also put together my own personal board of directors this past year which is a small group of trusted people who serve as mentors and a sounding board on hard days, big decisions, or when I just need someone to talk to. I can't take credit for the idea as I've heard other people describe something similar, but it's been very effective.

Shifting your mindset. I've struggled at times to see the positive side of things, to find gratitude, or to remember my "why" in difficult moments. I've learned that mindset has to start from a place of gratitude, because the daily ups and downs may make you forget otherwise. So I look for what I can learn from every situation, including my mistakes. Instead of beating myself up, I try to give myself grace and move forward. Gratitude doesn't erase the hard days, but it helps me keep them in perspective. I've also started taking a moment to step back and look around. Nothing lifts my spirits like driving through one of our parks and not noticing the issues, but the smiling faces and families enjoying what we provide. It's a good reminder of why we do this work.

Using the health benefits of parks. I touched on this above, but parks and recreation offer real health benefits to the people who use them and it hit me one day that I'd stopped believing that for myself. I used to run three or four times a week in our local parks, and I stopped after finishing a race. There was a direct line between that stop and the decline I saw in my own mental health. So, it was time to get back out there. I've been running again for the past two months, and I’ve noticed the improvement. Getting out into our parks, green spaces, and nature is genuinely good for us and it's worth remembering to enjoy it.

Setting boundaries. Boundaries have always been hard for me, especially around shutting things down. I was constantly checking email or taking calls, and I finally had to draw some lines that gave me time to reset and, frankly, rest. For me that meant setting a real stopping time each night, and on some days not bringing my laptop home at all. It also meant deliberately planning things I looked forward to, so I wasn't tempted to check email or take a call instead. We need to take time for ourselves, time with our families and time to reset so we can show up consistently for those that rely on us.

If you're struggling with your mental health, I want you to know you're not alone. Taking care of ourselves is one of the most important jobs we have. Our work does so much to take care of our communities but we're part of those communities too. If we don't invest in ourselves, it gets a lot harder to serve everyone else well.