Wellness Calendar: Monday 9 June

Tight-sphincter blues
Sphincter: an internal muscle that relaxes or tightens to open or close a passage.
Some people, metaphorically speaking, have tight sphincters, insofar as everything in the world around them makes them angry, embittered and tense.
They’re constantly outraged at what other people do or don’t do with their bodies, identities and voices. They can’t seem to let other people lead their own lives: they have to intrude and make their displeasure known. Needless to say, they’re rarely happy in their own lives, perhaps undone by their own reserved nature and their inability to be who they would like to be. Hence the need to dump their s*** on people who are seeking to be more liberated than them.
To compound this problem, plenty of newspapers cater to this type of person and help them to tighten their sphincters even more, with shock headlines of the isn’t it disgusting! variety.
If you identify as having tight-sphincter blues (TSB), first of all congratulations for noticing. The second thing might be to unblock those pipes of yours by taking yourself away from the world of hatred and hubris and spending more time with the things that bring you unconditional peace and delight. Thirdly and finally, when you are ready, you may wish to make peace with the very people you once despised. There’s always commonality, even if it’s merely a shared love of music. Hold onto these tenuous, unifying threads for all you’re worth, and reclaim your humanity.
If you need any role models, how about the two Northern Irish warmongers Ian Paisley and Martin McGuiness. Who would have thought they’d ever sit in a room together, never mind become the best of friends?