DV & PH Awareness Month

November holds space for conversations that are often difficult but deeply necessary.

It is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and also Pulmonary Hypertension Awareness Month in Canada.

Both remind us how much strength can exist beneath the surface.

This month, I found myself returning to a piece of mine that was selected a while back and displayed in the community. It’s a simple line drawing with words I wrote intentionally:

“Take off the mask and look in the mirror. You deserve to be yourself without living in fear.”

Then at the bottom, I added the DV slogan of the year: “No more silence, end domestic violence.”

I created this piece while learning how fear and silence can become part of daily life for many people. Domestic violence is not always visible. Sometimes it lives in quiet moments, isolation, or the pressure to stay composed for the sake of others. Having an awareness and label of the actions may not solve it all, but it can help.

I’m grateful for organizations like Waypoints (pictures of theirs below), who continue to speak clearly and compassionately about domestic and family violence. Their work helps create language, safety, and support where silence once existed.

November is also a time to acknowledge people living with pulmonary hypertension (PH). A young girl in our community lives with PH, and her strength is a reminder that many battles are invisible.

Awareness is not just about recognition. It’s about empathy, care, and making room for the realities people carry quietly.

And for the reminder that art, honesty, and community can still help light the way.