Mental Health Awareness Week is a time to remind ourselves to look past appearances. Behaviour is multifaceted….what you see is NOT always what you get - and sometimes what you see is not even what’s important.

When I recently attended a big networking event, some kind soul described my husband and I as a power couple! In reality, we’re perhaps more country bumpkins than power couple. Our happiest times are spent in nature. Hubby loves working outdoors, and I revel in my quiet clinic at the heart of our small farm.

Since I’m an introvert at heart, the emotional effort it required for me to attend this fabulous event was invisible to most. Back in the corporate world, I learned years ago how to extrovert, devising a range of gregarious strategies to support my marketing career. Nowadays, extroversion takes far more out of me, plus it creates a cognitive dissonance that’s tricky to handle.

This week, please know that second-guessing someone else’s turmoil sadly changes nothing. But you CAN make a difference! Once you sense that things may not be what they seem, just start with gentle. Settle back and let the other person lead the pace.

Everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about. Stay out of their struggles and let them show you what eases their internal conflict.