Mental Landscapes

Tonight! Come join us in creative community, discussing seasonal affective disorder, healing our relationship to darkness, and what our nocturnal animal companions can teach us about nighttime!

Don't miss out on the Mental Landscapes Fall Gathering: Eventide! Eventide will be part conversation, part collective creative workshop, and an opportunity to unwind and reframe our relationship to darkness outdoors as the seasons change. Inspired by Kelsey Zlevor, MCRP's artist residency at Allerton Park and Retreat Center in November 2023, this event will encourage you to root into the wisdom of our nocturnal animal companions as a guiding force to find delight in the dark.?Join us on Thursday, November 14th at 7:00 PM CST. Grab your ticket and favorite mug, cozy slippers, and a healthy dose of curiosity!?

The one where we get ?? cosmic ??. Only half-kidding: but come hang out for the first Mental Landscapes seasonal gathering! Free and open to all, this first one, Eventide, will focus on how we might adjust our bodies and be in relationship to darkness outdoors as we roll back daylight savings time. Part conversation, part collective creative workshop, registration will open soon. Hope you can join! One of the best balms for seasonal affective disorder is hanging out with pals. ????

After a two-year break on interviews, I’m opening the books again and would love to include you! If you’re interested, the Google Intake Form is in the comments. Interviews are up to one hour, confidential, and include a consent form to control how your story is recorded or shared. While interviews are unpaid (until I find a grant to support paying interviewees), I’ll send you a small gift via snail mail as a token of my appreciation. ? This round, I’m especially interested in anyone who has not necessarily been diagnosed with depression but experienced circumstantial depression tied to a specific Iife event, such as the death of a loved one, breakup, loss of job, post-partum, etc. If this applies to you, your experience was legitimate and I’d be glad to include you too! Please feel free to share the form and message with any questions. ??????♀?

Mental Landscapes began as a response to park and public space design conversations relying on the belief that the provision of these spaces would prevent depression, instead of exploring how these spaces are supportive for the condition as it exists. This work asserts that depression can be a biological and rational response to life conditions that may impact a person at any point, such as the death of a loved one; loss of work, health, sense of purpose, or culture; displacement from a home; a part of the post-partum process; or experiences of violence, discrimination, or poverty. On #WorldMentalHealthDay, we imagine this work as an iteration of socialized mental health care: transitioning from solely private treatment into a community responsibility, where the commons are intentionally designed to accompany and reconnect us with our bodies, other people, and the natural world even on our hardest days.?

A huge thank you to everyone who showed up and showed out at the Mental Landscapes workshop at American Planning Association - Illinois Chapter conference last week! We talked about the role of parks as socialized mental healthcare, what it means to design from a place of feeling (the fun and the challenging), and of course got to dig into a lot of craft supplies.

I love my conference session prep! Putting together my kits for Mental Landscapes workshops is an art and a science in that I’m actually really intentional about what I include even though it all looks random. I’ve picked out everything by hand over time according to what I know works, creates psychological safety, and sparks the most imagination. My general policies are: ?? used (thrift craft supply stores or friend donations) ?? right-sized (beads too small, tennis ball too large) ?? non-violent (no army men, toy weapons of any kind) ?? standalone (no legos that have to be assembled) ?? organic shapes (right angles rarely exist in nature) ?? discernible (circles for suns, rectangles for benches) ?? nostalgic (pipe cleaners, popsicle sticks, board game pieces) ?? whimsy (a few funny items that get people laughing) See my latest find that checks the whimsy category.

We are going for practical, memorable, and relatable swag only in 2024. And as our original interviewees shared: we support removing the stigma of crying outside. Get your tissues at upcoming workshops and meetings! ????

We are one week out from seeing all of our friends at American Planning Association - Illinois Chapter! See you soon!