With Mother’s Day on Sunday, many were excited to celebrate the day with their moms.

“I plan on making her a card and maybe taking her to breakfast,” said COC student Tyler Ponegalek about his plans for enjoying the day with his mother.

Ponegalek planned to use his experience in video game design to create a card for his mom.

This time of year is when most like to show their love through gifts and thoughtful messages.

However, some don’t get to spend the holiday with their loved one due to physical distance between them.

“She lives in Turkey, so I’ll probably end up calling her to wish her a happy Mother’s day,” COC Associate Biology Professor Dilek Sanver-Wang explained.

Sanver-Wang is also a mother, with two daughters of her own.

Since she moved here for school in 1993 Sanver-Wang has not gotten to spend a Mother’s Day with her mom, which she describes as difficult but manageable.

“When I do get to see her I make sure every memory is a good one,” Sanver-Wang stated about when she does get to visit with her family.

Although a long-distance relationship can be tough, others no longer get the opportunity to talk to or see their mothers.

“There are times when I wish I could pick up the phone and tell her what’s going on,” said Media Entertainment Arts Professor Dave Brill.

For Brill, this time of year is especially difficult after losing his mom to an illness a few years ago.

“I don’t think about it that often but this one day I always think about her, doesn’t matter what I’m doing,” Brill emphasized.

For those that have feelings that are difficult to cope with surrounding this time of the year, it is perfectly normal to feel this way.

“Mother’s Day is going to bring up those grief issues so you’re going to be expecting to feel loss, expecting to feel sadness, expecting to feel anxiety and longing and sometimes you might even feel guilt,” explained Larry Schallert, the assistant director of the student health and wellness mental health program on COC’s Valencia campus.

Schallert emphasized the importance of identifying these difficult feelings and talking about them “either with a loved one or with one of us in the health center”.

Brill described his mother, Nancy, as one of the strongest people he’s ever met, with her being a single mom and a pediatrician in the 70s.

“All you have to do is walk down, make an appointment, and talk to a therapist here,” encouraged Shallert.

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