{"id":1404,"date":"2021-10-05T22:56:00","date_gmt":"2021-10-05T22:56:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bcchrtpgg.wpenginepowered.com\/?p=1404"},"modified":"2025-09-16T23:18:40","modified_gmt":"2025-09-16T23:18:40","slug":"life-like-jam-jar-improve-mental-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bcchr.ca\/tgrc\/2021\/10\/05\/life-like-jam-jar-improve-mental-health\/","title":{"rendered":"Could looking at your life like a jam jar improve your mental health?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\t
\n\t
\n\t

Dr. Jehannine Austin spoke to Harper\u2019s Bazaar about a simple analogy that can change how we think about mental health. This analogy was a game-changer for the interviewer \u2014 and it can be for you too.<\/p>

It\u2019s April 2020, five degrees celsius, and I\u2019m in a 30-strong queue at a local bakery to buy, improbably, fresh yeast to make hot cross buns. In the last 10 years, I\u2019ve baked precisely one cake and zero bread. I was jumping on a bandwagon to pass the sudden glut of free time the pandemic delivered. Of course it was fiddly and tedious. I then ate the very average batch over a lonely Easter weekend, while attempting Joe Wicks\u2019 PE to burn them off, which proved too high-impact for my dodgy knees. I also stayed up far too late watching unsettling Netflix shows. Tiger King\u2019s depraved lunacy seemed appropriate mood music for a world that was suddenly all wrong. And it filled the quiet.<\/p>

What I needed in those dark early days of the pandemic was not to do what everyone else was doing, but to really find the things that would lift and sustain me. I needed to open my mental health jam jar (stick with me).<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n

\n\t
\n\t
\n\t
\n\t\t\t<\/figure>\n
\n\t

We all have a \u2018mental illness jar\u2019, which is filled with both genetic and environmental factors.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n

\n\t
\n\t
\n\t

I first heard the jam jar analogy via an unlikely source: Alastair Campbell. The former Labour Party spin doctor has talked openly about his depression<\/a>, and in a 2019 documentary, met genetic counsellor Dr Jehannine Austin to talk about how his family history of mental illness links to his own experiences. His findings? Genetics is only one part of the story; external factors and circumstances are what can tip things over the edge. But, crucially, whether you have a diagnosed condition or not, there are specific, personalised actions you can do to build your mental resilience.<\/p>

Dr Austin\u2019s simple analogy goes like this: We all have a \u2018mental illness jar\u2019, which is filled with both genetic and environmental factors. We all have some genetic vulnerability to mental illness but it varies hugely, this goes into the jar first. Environmental factors follow; think job issues, relationship problems, financial worries and personal loss. Our genetics don\u2019t change, but the environmental factors do (hello, global pandemic). When our jar fills up and overflows with these influences, we enter a period of poor mental health. \u201cA single big event can have a large impact on our vulnerability,\u201d Austin told me over a Zoom call from Canada. \u201cIt can even fill up a jar to the top, leading to someone possibly experiencing their first active episode of illness.\u201d<\/p>

The numbers bear this out: the latest statistics from the ONS show that last year around one in five people in the UK reported suffering from depression<\/a> \u2013 double 2019\u2019s number. Similar rates of anxiety were recorded. Even with restrictions easing, the residual emotional toll and trauma of the last 12 months is predicted to be long-term.<\/p>

So what can we do to help ourselves now? We can add \u2018rings\u2019 or \u2018protective factors\u2019 to make our jars taller. These are grounded in some fundamentals that Dr Austin boils down to sleep, nutrition, exercise, good social support networks and finding ways of managing stress. \u201cBoring, boring, boring, we all know that,\u201d she says in her refreshingly straight-talking way. \u201cBut you can use this knowledge to empower you to take more control over them. It\u2019s up to the individual to find the things that work for them.\u201d<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n

\n\t
\n\t
\n\t
\n\t
\n\t
\n\t\t

\n\t\t\tWe can add \u2018rings\u2019 or \u2018protective factors\u2019 to make our jars taller.\t\t<\/p>\n\t<\/blockquote>\n\t

\n\t\t\t<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n
\n\t
\n\t
\n\t

At its most simplistic level, cooking for me is more functional than enjoyable, so I could have ditched baking for knocking up a batch of my favourite one-pot veggie chilli to freeze. Nutrition, tick. I could have swapped Wicks\u2019 jumping and squatting for some knee-friendly online pilates, and traded Joe Exotic and Carole Baskin for something warm and funny \u2013 two words: Schitt\u2019s Creek<\/em>. I could have bought the hot cross buns, rather than baking my own mediocre version that miserable Easter.<\/p>

While working out ways to be happy in your own company is essential, and apparently took me 35 years to master, it will only go so far. \u201cWe\u2019re a group species; we need other humans,\u201d says Austin. We all have those non-negotiable people in our lives whether that\u2019s a partner, friends or family. The pandemic may have robbed us of spontaneous meet-ups, parties and human touch, but it also affirmed our most significant relationships and made us kinder; more attuned to others\u2019 needs. illness.\u201d<\/p>

For those like me who have a diagnosed mental illness, professional treatment are rings too.\u00a0I have bipolar II<\/a>; a mood disorder characterised by periods of elevated mood, known as \u2018hypomania\u2019, and episodes of depression, the latter of which for me has been severe. My daily medication, fortnightly psychotherapy and regular appointments with my psychiatrist are crucial protective factors.<\/p>

Back to those universal fundamentals. Sleep is key and we know it\u2019s a problem right now.\u00a0A study by King\u2019s College<\/a>\u00a0found that in the first lockdown around half of the population reported that their sleep had been more disturbed than usual. Austin says she is \u201crigid\u201d about bedtime and has little rituals to \u201cramp my brain down from its level of work-based activity\u201d. She says that might be watching something on Netflix, followed by a book \u201cthat takes me down another notch\u201d. She has a hot shower before bed and applies a lavender-scented body cream.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n

\n\t
\n\t
\n\t
\n\t
\n\t
\n\t\t

\n\t\t\tNo self-flagellation, it\u2019s about doing the best you can, when you can.\t\t<\/p>\n\t<\/blockquote>\n\t

\n\t\t\t<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n
\n\t
\n\t
\n\t

On the nutrition front, when I contracted Covid in January, as well as being zapped of energy, I lost my taste and smell, neither of which have returned fully. NHS guidance says ready meals might be a good short-term solution. I fully embraced the government-sanctioned methods, absolving myself of all guilt \u2013 as long as something pre-prepared is relatively nutritionally balanced, it doesn\u2019t matter if it comes via Deliveroo rather than the result of hours in the kitchen. Austin’s recommended M.O? \u201cNo self-flagellation, it\u2019s about doing the best you can, when you can and being compassionate with yourself.\u201d<\/p>

Work is one of my rings. Alastair Campbell put it in a neat way: \u201cmeaningful activity\u201d. For him this was \u201cwork to make a living\u201d and \u201cwork to make a difference\u201d. I don\u2019t have the luxury of an even balance of both, and I know I need some creativity to keep my brain fully oiled. Maybe brain-storming the latest trends with my team \u2013 \u201cbeing alive\u201d to the world as one of my journalism tutors put it \u2013 or occasionally writing pieces like this: mental health and raising awareness of bipolar disorder have become my passion areas.<\/p>

I know I\u2019m in a very fortunate position to have kept my job, many others haven\u2019t been so lucky, and sometimes the protective factors can only go so far, especially when you\u2019re down a ring. \u201cLosing your job is a life-shaking thing,\u201d says Austin. \u201cGive yourself time to grieve, acknowledge how fucking difficult that is. You\u2019re not going to fix it by going for a run or cooking a nice dinner.\u201d<\/p>

Austin has a history of depression and anxiety, and found in the last year, she had to change things up. \u201cI was doing my sleep hygiene, my exercise, my eating, but despite my very best efforts, I was only managing to maintain a very fragile state of mental health.\u201d She started taking antidepressants and recommends that anyone struggling should speak to their GP to look at treatment options like talking therapy or medication. \u201cWhen you\u2019re in that place where you cannot do the things that you know will help, then you may need a little kick to get you out of the bottom.\u201d Yet even in the lowest moments she will do her best to practice even a semblance of a protective factor, like a social interaction: \u201cWhen I feel like shit, reaching out and letting people know I\u2019m grateful to them, makes a difference in turn to me. I feel like I\u2019ve spread a little good.\u201d<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n

\n\t
\n\t
\n\t
\n\t
\n\t
\n\t\t

\n\t\t\tWhen the going gets tough, and your jar is close to overflowing, stay true to yourself.\t\t<\/p>\n\t<\/blockquote>\n\t

\n\t\t\t<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n
\n\t
\n\t
\n\t

When the going gets tough, and your jar is close to overflowing, stay true to yourself. The thing I\u2019ve most enjoyed in the last year? Creating an analogue interiors moodboard to plan redecorating of my house \u2013 a cheap corkboard and pins are the only requirements. I\u2019ve loved narrowing down paint samples and fabric choices and seeing things come together. Creating a unique, cosy, comfortable home will always be important to me. But if I end up scrolling Pinterest in bed late at night for inspiration, then I\u2019m not going to beat myself up.<\/p>

If you’ve been affected by any of the issues raised above please visit\u00a0samaritans.org<\/a>\u00a0for advice and support.<\/em><\/p>

Credit: Harper’s Baazar<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dr. Jehannine Austin spoke to Harper\u2019s Bazaar about a simple analogy that can change how we think about mental health. This analogy was a game-changer for the interviewer \u2014 and it can be for you too.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1594,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","fndry_alternate_title":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[24,21],"class_list":["post-1404","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-depression","tag-mental-health"],"modified_by":"Andrea Sakamoto","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bcchr.ca\/tgrc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1404","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bcchr.ca\/tgrc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bcchr.ca\/tgrc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcchr.ca\/tgrc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcchr.ca\/tgrc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1404"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcchr.ca\/tgrc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1404\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2669,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcchr.ca\/tgrc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1404\/revisions\/2669"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcchr.ca\/tgrc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1594"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bcchr.ca\/tgrc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1404"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcchr.ca\/tgrc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1404"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcchr.ca\/tgrc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1404"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}