Dr. Sabrina explains how some unsightly things can take a hidden toll on our mental well-being

It's Mental Health Monday. There is something about blighted buildings that people just find fascinating. Some of us wonder what it used to look like. That's me. I always think about that. But for some, the sight can leave a feeling of uneasiness. Dr. Sabrina Jackson is here to explain. Hey, Doc. Hey. You know, I'm one of those people, when I see a blighted building, I always imagine what it was like in its heyday. In its heyday. Well, blight is more than just the abandoned buildings. it is the vacant lots that people begin to use for illegal dumping and things of that nature so when you're riding down the street and you see all of these blighted things it immediately impacts your mental health because it makes you feel some kind of way you may jump into fight fight or flight like i don't feel safe here it causes you not to feel safe it may make you concerned about crime you know who's hiding behind those bushes and things of that nature so we have to understand that when we're in these spaces it causes us to feel a certain way it may increase our risk of depression or just mental stress and so when we know those things what can we do in those moments to get ourselves to feel elevated and increase our mood so of course the greening in our neighborhoods is huge and so there's the green in Detroit that's the organization that they come out and they do things in the community to make the community look better so when it looks better you can feel better so that's one thing but that's outdoor what can you do indoor internally internally so you should make sure that even if your neighborhood is not what you would want it to be what things can I do to make my home my safe haven so what can I do to make sure because you're we experience the world through our five senses so when i walk into the house what scents come up like i love a good baked good they have candles that smell like baked goods so things that you can do to make sure when you walk through that door even though outside may not be what you want it to be inside can definitely be what you want it to be attacking any of those senses that you could to invoke a feeling of safety, safety, warmth, comfort, absolutely visuals, maybe pictures or things that you like to look at. I went to a friend's house recently and out his back window he had a thing that was, um, somebody created was like a box that when you looked out you didn't see outside you saw flowers and things right outside this window, so the things that you can control, do control, and one of the greatest examples is over there in Highland Park, Mama Shu took tons of land and created Avalon Village and so she has a homework house, she has a space where people can come and it's beautiful, the lighting there is nice and so you can do something not just in your home but in your community, make sure that you get people together maybe to clean up the park or clean up the blight that you see. And a broader message, control what you can control. Control what you can control. So often we do get out of our space of what we have control over. What do you got going on? You've got so much happening. I have so much happening. Tomorrow night, Tuesday night over at Cornbread's, we're celebrating Breast Cancer Awareness Month. So come on out, have and wear your pink. I'm going to be your celebrity host. So we're going to be doing karaoke. karaoke, we're just going to be having a good time. Karaoke, we're going to do some singing. And then this coming Saturday, I am launching my new talk show, and we're filming it live at the Bonzio right on Woodward. So come on out. It's free. I need a live audience because I need people. So come on out. 2 p.m. 2 p.m. Saturday? Look at that. Saturday. Go see Dr. Sabrina for free. SabrinaJackson.com. You have all that on your website. SabrinaJackson.com. All right.