Show Notes
We’ve been hearing lots about the upcoming El Nino and how this might lead to a hotter summer for us, and how Europe has had massive heatwaves this year. Most of us are aware of the physical dangers of extreme heat, such as heat exhaustion and heat stroke. However, researchers are now finding that heat can also affect mental health – with even a small increase in temperature associated with increases in mental health-related problems. Specifically, people can experience more: Irritability Anxiety Depression Sleep problems Worsening symptoms of existing mental illness Increased use of mental health services However, not everyone is affected equally. Those more at risk include: People with caregiving responsibilities as looking after children, elderly relatives, or someone with health problems can increase emotional strain and reduce the ability to look after one's own needs. People taking certain medications, particularly those that interfere with the body’s ability to regulate temperature including antidepressants and some heart medications. People who have increased heat sensitivity including pregnant mums, women in menopause and perimenopause, and people who are sleep deprived (e.g., new parents!). Also, those people who are more exposed to heat such as people who work outdoors, those with poorly ventilated homes, or who work around machinery. So what helps protect mental health during heat and what we can do to prepare? Having strong family and community connections help people cope practically and emotionally. Supportive relationships can provide: Reminders to stay hydrated Help accessing cooler places Emotional reassurance Monitoring of vulnerable individuals
Access to green and blue spaces (parks, gardens, bodies of water). These environments may provide not only physical cooling benefits but also psychological benefits e.g., increased ability to enjoy being outside, more socialising and receiving support from other people. Social participation. Activities such as visiting friends, participating in community groups, and maintaining social contact helped protect against depression during heatwaves. Often during extreme heat people become isolated as they stay inside in an effort to remain cool so keeping up social participation can reduce this loneliness and depression. It's important to start thinking about and preparing for summer heat now, to protect both your physical and mental health. It will benefit you and your family, but also wider society if we can reduce pressure on Emergency Depts and medical services. Start thinking about who in your world might be vulnerable over summer. Make some plans ahead of time about keeping connected – try and include trips to blue and green spaces when you connect. Go and buy some fans now and beat the rush. Don’t wait till the middle of summer when we’re all suffering!
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More from Saturday Morning with Jack Tame
Stuart McKenzie describes his latest play as a "theological road trip". 'After God' is the latest work of theatrical power couple Dame Miranda Harcourt and Stuart McKenzie – a verbatim play about a search for meaning and discussions with theologists. "I think people are kind of searching for meaning, for a sense of what makes their lives tick. There's a lot of darkness and a lot of uncertainty in the world, as there always is," McKenzie told Jack Tame. "I think it's more amplified at the moment, of course, but there is a feeling of what else is there? What am I here for? So 'After God' is a play to answer that question, but it does it with humour." Both he and Harcourt directed the show, and she told Tame they came at it from very different angles. "It's like a post-ethical theologian and an atheist walk into a room together. I'm an atheist, Stuart's a post-ethical theologian," Harcourt explained. "My staunch atheism has not been challenged, but I really understand Stuart's perspective a lot more having worked on this play." "And that's what I would offer the audience, is that you understand a lot more about yourself and the people around you once you've seen this play." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Six years in the making, The Avalanches have released their fourth studio album. The Australian electronic group formed back in 1997, with albums releasing in 2000, 2016, 2020, and now 2026. Their music is created out of samples, and 'No Bad Memories' draws on old jingles, commercial branding, tech sounds, as well as music, to create a nostalgic vibe. Chris Schulz joined Jack Tame to share his thoughts on the album. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
An Irish advertisement promoting consent has been withdrawn due to criticism. It was part of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre's 'We-Consent' campaign, and featured a teenager reluctant to hug their grandparents. The Centre says it's making a point about respecting boundaries from a young age, but the Irish Justice Minister says the ad's 'inappropriate and demeaning'. Kevin Milne joined Jack Tame to give his two cents on the situation. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Life Out of Order by Audrey Niffenegger Two great loves. A world in chaos. And a life that never lands in order. Discover the long-awaited sequel to the bestselling phenomenon, The Time Traveler’s Wife. Alba DeTamble is a time traveler, slipping unpredictably through decades like her father before her. But the hardest thing she carries isn’t the burden of futures she can’t understand, or pasts she cannot change – it’s a secret: she is in love with two different people. Each of them offers a different life. Zach lives in the present and can’t follow her when she disappears. Oliver can travel through time, just like she can. As Alba careens from time to time, moving from the riot-torn Chicago streets of her present to the eerie, timeless Yellow House, and into the digital corridors of the Museum of Lost Souls and a flooded future London, she must face a question she can no longer avoid: how is it possible to love, and live a meaningful life, in an increasingly troubled, fractured world? Intimate and expansive, Life Out of Order is a kaleidoscopic story of love, resilience and hope when time is running out.
"Wide open spaces and serenely undulating landscapes set quite the stage for summer holiday frolics. Sprinkle that setting with a spoil of unexpected gems and experiential treats, and the Waitaki Valley delivers in spades. It’s been a long time coming, but Waitaki’s latest accolades in Lonely Planet’s annual Best in Travel list should come as no surprise. Crowning the head of the Waitaki Valley and backdropped by the Southern Alps, the junction town of Ōmārama brims with distinction. Ōmārama is Māori for ‘place of light’, a pitch-perfect description for the big skies, clarity of the light and the starkness of the surrounding landscape." Read Mike's full article here. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.