An ode to joy

The weather is warmer, gold ornaments are appearing in the city and Michael Bublé has begun his annual takeover of the airwaves. Christmas is coming … but something is missing. There are no end-of-year parties to look forward to; for many of us money is tight; and for me, based in Sydney, there’s a very real chance I won’t be with my family.

I haven’t been home to Melbourne since last Christmas, when bushfire smoke choked our skylines, and the year that followed provided little joy or respite. So, it’s no surprise I’m approaching the holidays feeling emotionally threadbare.

And I’m not the only one. Almost four in five Australians (78 per cent) have said their mental health has worsened due to the pandemic, according to a Black Dog Institute study led by UNSW Associate Professor Jill Newby. Younger people and women have been particularly hard hit, and that was at the start of the crisis.

By August, a study of young people showed that rates of depression and anxiety had not improved, despite the