May isn’t just the month of Mother’s Day; it is also Maternal Mental Health Awareness Month. Before I became a mother, I thought that the conversation surrounding maternal mental health simply wasn’t all that different from everyday normal mental health conversations. I’m not sure there was any way to prepare me for the shift that would take place immediately after giving birth. I’ve started to tell others that I see God’s faithfulness so clearly in labor, delivery, and postpartum—but what I don’t often say is exactly why.

Almost a decade ago, there was a movement that dealt with the rise in motorcycle accidents. It started with a simple billboard campaign, “Start Seeing Motorcycles.” Unlike some ads, this one worked. It got the attention of motorists, and many changed their driving behavior. I became more aware of bikers on the road. That was easy to do, since at the time I lived in Harley country.

I’m so glad it’s summer.

There are many reasons for this—sunshine! patio dining! sundresses! But the number one reason is that it’s simply not winter.

This time last year, I had a notebook full of unruly notes and an awareness that the messes all around me weren’t all there is to life.

I had zero idea on how to form my unruly notebook into a book. My thoughts overflowed onto page after page without any boundaries or order. I turned to my friend, Sarah, and said, “Help me name this thing, this feeling, this truth—there are messes in life that I have very little control over. Some of it is caused by overt sin, mine, yours, everybody’s. But sometimes the mess just is. It looks like mental health challenges and other health problems, relationship struggles that have very few good answers, or earthquakes, floods, loss.”

Many people make New Year’s resolutions to be healthier, either mentally or physically. Whether your goal is to eat more vegetables or to start going to therapy, the goal of your resolution is likely to be a better version of yourself.

Being healthy encompasses more than just having low cholesterol or reaching a certain number on the scale.

If you are anything like me, you are starting your days looking for your “marbles”—those elements of clear thinking, emotional steadiness, calm relational clarity, and clear purpose that normally anchor your mental well-being. Yet now we are socially separated with multiple barriers to our normal modes of communication and relationship maintenance.

Weeks ago, we could walk down the hall, respond to questions face-to-face with colleagues, and, importantly, use our social and emotional IQs to read one another’s responses to our communication. We could add a moment of “blowing off steam” or even “taking a breather” along with the actual business of sharing ideas and strategies. We were able to shake a hand, hug our children or grandchildren, share a meal, and worship together under the same shelter. Not now. We’re experiencing isolation.