Telluride Med Center: Dealing with grief and loss as a community!

20 Aug Telluride Med Center: Dealing with grief and loss as a community!

If you are experiencing a mental health crisis, call The Center for Mental Health’s crisis line at 970.252.6220. For help with deep stress, Behavioral Health expert Lindsay Wright can be reached by calling the Telluride Medical Center at 970-728-3848 or, if you are a patient, by messaging her through the Telluride Medical Center portal.

In this week’s Mental Health Moment, Lindsay shares her thoughts about processing grief and loss as a community.

Go here for more Mental Health Moments.

Our community has lost several young people in the past 18 months. Each one of those losses has brought up complex emotions and unanswerable questions.

The pain within our community is palpable, and there has been little time to rest and heal, as these tragedies are layered upon pandemic, a housing crisis, employment and childcare shortage, and an unremitting tourist season.

There seems hardly a moment to breathe, let alone to process heavy emotions.

And while we cannot lump these arresting losses together, there are through lines that lead many of us towards a collective grief, the sum of which equals a magnitude we have not known before.

Each of the community members we have lost was unique, with distinct personalities and stories, strengths and struggles, and each spectacular in their own right, with their own circle of people they touched.

Today, on behalf of the team here at our clinic, we would like to send our deepest condolences to those who have experienced these losses intimately.

Over the past week, I’ve personally reflected on the grief our town is experiencing, and have mulled over the myriad ways in which our community knits together to share grief collectively.

In my reflection, I’ve been contemplating this quote, which I think may provide some insight:

“You can’t love without one day grieving. To welcome love into your life means that you also have to welcome grief. They’re two sides of the same precious coin,” Bonnie Carroll and Dr. Alan D. Wolfelt.

Most of us choose to live in this valley for not only the beautiful mountains, but for the strength of the connections within the community. Our connection to others is vital, our love for our neighbors is strong.

That we share grief is a strength we don’t necessarily count among our privileges, but it is nevertheless, our gift to behold.

With this in mind, I encourage you to lean on your friends and neighbors and to reach out to others who may need extra affirmation of belonging.

Check in with people; offer to share a story or a cup of coffee.

If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts, get support. (A full list of local crisis resources can be found here. )

This is a challenging time for all of us, don’t hesitate to reach out if you need support.

Again, youcan reach me or a primary care provider by calling the Telluride Medical Center at 970-728-3848, or if you are a patient of Telluride Medical Center, you can message me or your provider through the Telluride Medical Center portal.

If you are experiencing a crisis, please reach out to the behavioral health co-responders, via the San Miguel County Sheriff’s office, at 970-728-1911.

Be well…