Question: I am looking around my life and feeling like I don’t have a part in the world around me. There are so many things I can’t control. I am not sure what to do – can you help?

Answer: My first response is: come let me give you a hug! I am so sorry to hear you are feeling that way. I want you to understand that there is help out there for you. There are also a lot of things in your life you can control.

You have Medicare and ALL the products that go with Medicare coverage do cover mental health services. If you have original Medicare and a Medicare Supplement, you can see any provider that participates in Medicare – there are a lot of them in our community.

If you have a Medicare Advantage Plan, you can call your insurance company and ask for mental health providers in our community who are In-Network with your plan. You can also call the mental health providers in our community and ask if they participate in your plan for 2026.

Please get some help.

You also can reach out to your religious community leaders. All faiths provide support services, but you must tell them what you need. Someone to talk to, someone to guide you through this difficult time.

If you don’t belong to a church or faith community, you can go to one near you, walk in and sit for a while, attend the service, or talk with the staff there. They will help you.

Another thing I want you to do is look around that home of yours and see all that have. There are many in our community who don’t have nearly that much. There are many who don’t have a warm place to sleep, or clean clothes to wear, or enough food to eat.

You can make an impact on others in the world in a very positive way.

Each New Year we often set New Year’s Resolutions and talk about our goals for the coming year. One goal I’ve set for myself is to help others. There is a lot going on in the world today that discourages me, that frustrates me, and makes me feel out of control. Like the world is becoming a very bad place.

I know that I can’t change most of that, but what I can do is make the world around me a better place. I can make someone’s life better every day. I’ve tried to do that every day for the last few years. Maybe it is by helping them with their insurance. Maybe it is by helping someone get their groceries to their car, or into their house. Maybe it is donating something I no longer need.

There are so many little acts of kindness that we can do every day, that don’t cost anything, but time and attention. You don’t have to spend money to make the world a better place. You can smile at people as you walk by them. You can compliment them on their outfit, or their hair, or their car. You hold the door at the convenient store. You can let someone ahead of you in line.

Then when someone does something nice for you, don’t’ forget to say, “Thank You, that made my day!” That makes everyone’s day better. With my goal of helping others, one of the new ways I’m working on that goal is, every day, I find something in my home I no longer want or need, and give it away. I have a box for the SPCA, with things like towels and toys I had for my dog that I no longer have. I have a box for St. Luke’s Thrift store, of clothes that I don’t wear or don’t fit anymore. Then I have a box for our church rummage sale, which is twice a year. This box could also go to someplace like Love Inc, or Salvation Army.

Last week I donated three winter coats my husband and I no longer wear to the Warming Shelter in Jamestown. While there, I asked about other things they needed. They gave me a short list, and guess what, I had a bit of that stuff too.

Doing things like this, small acts of kindness are good for ME, and also good for our community. This is one of the ways that I find helps me stay centered in a positive place. Helping others helps yourself. It also makes me feel like I can make the world a little better every day.

I hope some of these suggestions are helpful to you. I understand being sad, alone and overwhelmed. Know that you do matter and you are a person of value.

Janell Sluga is a Geriatric Care Manager helping seniors in our community access services and insurance. To reach her, please email editorial@post-journal.com.