I recently saw a few posts on Instagram about Mental Health Week, which apparently is recognized October 5-9, 2026 in Sweden.
It reminded me that I had recently seen an event flier about a psychologist speaking at folkets hus (the theater) in Gällivare, so I connected the dots that he was probably speaking for mental health awareness.
Over the years Gällivare kommun has paid a number of recognized speakers to talk to the public about mental health and bullying. While I appreciate the kommun’s efforts to draw attention to these subjects, I have not found this method to be effective in actually combating challenges residents are facing because I have not seen much change in behavior of residents since I moved to Gällivare in 2016.
This led me to determine two main recommendations to actually help people experiencing mental health problems in Gällivare. These recommendations are a more holistic approach rather than a medication approach. I consider holistic methods to be more desirable since it can potentially bypass medication and truly address societal problems that negatively impact mental health.
My first recommendation – Support each other
If someone proposes an idea, lift them up. If the idea is an event, try to attend. Share it with others, show support. Do not ignore people with ideas or push them down, which is what I have unfortunately personally experienced in Gällivare a number of times. Whenever someone has a fire burning, keep that fire going, do not put it out! This is mental health support 101.
My second recommendation – Actually listen to people
Hear others out, put yourself in their shoes, try to understand their perspective, show sympathy. I have experienced people in Gällivare not hear me out when I explain a challenging moment, they are instead quick to silence me and propose their solution to a problem as though it is one size fits all. This can come off very cold and uncaring. Sometimes simply listening and showing support can be a big help to someone experiencing a difficult moment, the problem does not need to be fixed right away.
These are two main recommendations I think would go a long way for people who experience mental health problems primarily in Gällivare kommun in Sweden, though they would probably work well anywhere. They are also good for people in general, regardless of experiencing mental health problems or not.
Below you can view a recent view I published discussing this subject.