Dr Melissa Holowaty

05/08/2026

Not everyone is having the same experience.

05/01/2026

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DXzCAtKNorO/?igsh=bng1OThoMDB5OWZ2

04/26/2026

Looking for some free or low cost evidence based resources that you can access online? ThisWayUp from Australia has 17 different available programs in mindfulness, stress management, OCD, depression, anxiety, insomnia and more.

Access expert tips, useful resources, blogs, infographics, and translated worksheets to help look after your mental health when going through a difficult time.

04/22/2026

These are the lyrics to a song that showed up in my spotify feed recently from a Persona called Country Lunatic. (No judging please for apparently AI generated motivational country rap being in my algorithm). I thought there might be someone out there who could use seeing these words today......

If nobody told you today you’re beautiful I’m gonna say it again
not the magazine fake but the soul in your skin
You been carrying a weight that ain’t shaped like a plate
It’s shaped like regret
It’s shaped like too late
But listen
they don't get to decide who you are
It’s just business it leaves muddy footprints
But don’t get the keys to your spirit

You are not your worst day
Not your last mistake
not the text you never sent
not the love you couldn’t make stay
You are the comeback the crawl the stand the try
The "I’m still here" when the dark said die
So take a breath let it land let it hit you right
you matter you been mattering even when you didn’t feel alive

If nobody told you today you’re beautiful
I love you
if you ain’t heard it in a while
Let me be the one to
I’m proud of you
I don’t care what you’re going through
I believe in you even when you don’t believe you
Life’s a struggle
all we can do is all we can do
But if nobody needs you
I do
I do
I do

Living in survival mode smiling on autopilot
Laughing in public and then breaking down when the room goes silent
Bills on the table like threats
Stress in your chest
Like a siren sleep won’t come your mind won’t shut and the lonely is violent
And they love to say "You're Strong" like it’s easy to carry on
Like you ain’t been the only one doing the heavy and necessary
You got scars that don’t show
You got stones in your bones
You got nights when your phone felt colder than being alone
But look at you still fighting for morning
Even if the sunrise feels like another warning
Even if the mirror talks slick
Even if the past won't hush
Even if your heart is on a chain and the world keeps yanking it rough

I’m telling you straight you ain’t weak for feeling low
You’re not broken you’re a human with a heart that got stressed
And if all you did today was get up and not fold
That’s a win
That’s a crown
That’s a story untold

If nobody told you today you’re beautiful
I love you
if you ain’t heard it in a while
Let me be the one to
I’m proud of you
I don’t care what you’re going through
I believe in you even when you don’t believe you
Life’s a struggle
all we can do is all we can do
But if nobody needs you
I do
I do
I do

You don’t got to earn love by bleeding in silence
You don’t have to be perfect to be worth kindness
You don’t have to have it together just to deserve a hand
All you got is a thread that’s the plan
Some days you ain’t gonna feel strong Some days you feel small
Some days you feel numb Like you don’t feel at all
But you’re still you under the rubble gold underground
Still alive with a faded edge that just needs time
So when your head gets loud and starts talking that cruel
Remember this voice right here saying it true
You’re not alone
Not tonight
Not in this
If you can’t love yourself right now
Borrow mine

I don’t care if you at rock bottom, I am not scared of the dust
I don’t care if you feel unlovable I still mean Trust
You’ve been blamed for too much
Been shamed for too long
Been acting like you’re fine just to help everybody else find their way along
But your house ain’t a hotel you can’t house every ache
and still wonder why you’re empty why you shake when you wake
So here’s permission
Put yourself back on the list
Put your name on the top, like I deserve to exist
Text that friend drink that water take that shower take that step
Open the blinds just a crack, let the sunlight touch your chest
And if all you can do is breathe and hold on by a prayer you don’t say
Just breathe and hold on
Yeah, that’s still a way

I’m proud of you for the quiet wins nobody claps for
For the hours you survived for, the tears you ain’t asked for
For the days you wanted out but you stayed and you tried
That’s a warrior story even if you never felt like one inside

If nobody told you today you’re beautiful
I love you
if you ain’t heard it in a while
Let me be the one to
I’m proud of you
I don’t care what you’re going through
I believe in you even when you don’t believe you
Life’s a struggle
all we can do is all we can do
But if nobody needs you
I do
I do
I do

Read that again
I’m proud of you
I believe in you
And if nobody needs you, I do.

03/29/2026

I had the opportunity to spend some time with someone from the Canadian Mental Health Association this weekend. They shared with me some of the good things the CMHA in Saskatoon is offering.

Their website has some handy tools and resources, including peer support options and guidance on counselling and self care. I particularly liked the section on long term self care versus short term self soothing.

How you do you move from survival mode to thriving?

Every single one of us is responsible for understanding and taking care of our mental health because at some point in our life we will be faced with challenges and it is how we respond to these challenges that impact our overall wellness.

03/07/2026

I was reflecting on a few themes that have come up in the last few months in my psychotherapy practice and thought I would share them today.

The first is the idea of kintsugi, the traditional Japanese art of taking broken pottery and putting it back together using gold to create something even more stunning than the original. When people come to see me, they often feel broken. But through EMDR, we can create new understandings of past experiences that change our automatic assumptions about the world and ourselves.

I loved the analogy of kintsugi. Until I heard a song "Still Struggling". In these raw lyrics, the writer says "we're not broken, we're built, piece by piece", and that really made sense to me. No one is broken, because we never start out whole. We are a lifelong do-it-yourself project and where and how we build ourselves matters.

Some of my patients have come to similar conclusions organically during processing - none of us are broken, we are shaped by the forces and systems around us. And if we have the opportunity to reframe things to a more positive perspective, we can absolutely start seeing all of the gold in our lives.

02/21/2026

02/09/2026

https://wheatinstitute.com/wellness-clinic/about-the-wellness-clinic/

The WHEAT Online Wellness Centre provides online groups, individual art therapy and expressive arts sessions for healing and wellness. Student therapists are available to help you amplify your creativity and self-awareness, build self-esteem, relax and come into the present moment. A variety of arts media will be explored including paint, clay, pastels and more. Expressive arts sessions incorporate a variety of arts modalities such as visual art, poetry, drama and movement.

If you are interested in registering for an upcoming group, or individual art / expressive arts therapy support, offered through our Online Wellness Centre please book your initial intake appointment…

02/06/2026

I was thinking of how to put my sorrow and anger into words on this topic, and still provide hope for those reliving so much trauma these days, and then I saw Three Oaks Women's shelter had just done it.
So I am sharing their wise words here for anyone that needs them.

Believe women and children.
Take action any way you can.

If you are in Saskatoon and in need of counseling for sexual violence, please contact the Saskatoon Sexual Assault & Information Centre https://share.google/sVl1iH9pYWVm6bzkD

01/22/2026

I really respect this allergist and follow him routinely. I also have numerous patients in my pain practice with MCAS who I thought might be interested in this exploration.

https://www.facebook.com/share/r/16rUhQWjRw/

01/05/2026

There are an estimated million Canadians suffering from Long CoVID. I got to see a talk by Dr Ric Arseneau recently, and it was just fantastic. His website has lots of interesting and useful resources.
https://bc-clmf.org/