National Hat Day: The Different Hats We Wear
On January 15, we celebrate National Hat Day. Though it is an informal, light-hearted observance, it can symbolize the assistance we can offer our community. Whether it’s a baseball cap, beanie, or fedora, hats tend to say something about who we are or how we’re feeling that day. In that way, National Hat Day offers a fitting metaphor for recovery, whether from substance use, mental health challenges, or both.
Recovery isn’t about putting on one hat and sticking with it forever. Most days require switching roles, learning new skills, and adjusting expectations… sometimes hour by hour. One day might call for the self-care hat, the one that reminds someone to slow down, take medication as prescribed, attend therapy, practice mindfulness techniques learned through programs like Instill Mindfulness, or just rest. This hat doesn’t always get celebrated, but it does much needed work.
Another common hat in recovery is the courage hat. This is the one worn when someone admits they’re struggling, reaches out for support, walks through the doors of the Community Health Center for their first treatment, or returns after a relapse or a setback. Courage in recovery can appear ordinary from the outside, but it takes a lot of strength to continue choosing honesty and growth when it would be easier to stay silent.
For friends, family members, coworkers, and communities, recovery has its own set of hats. There’s the listener hat, worn when someone needs to talk without being judged or rushed to solutions. There’s the boundary hat, which helps us care while still protecting our own mental and emotional health. And sometimes there’s the steady hat, being a calm presence during unsure moments, whether that support happens through a group counseling session or a quiet check-in over coffee with a peer recovery specialist.
Communities play an important role in recovery as well. A community wears the advocate hat when it supports policies and programs that make treatment and mental health care easier to access, such as NRVCS and Rise Above. It wears the learning hat when it challenges stigma and replaces assumptions with understanding. Communities also wear the welcome hat when they make room for people at every stage of recovery, not just when they’re “doing well”. Sometimes that welcome looks as simple as inviting someone on a hike and letting nature do some of the talking.
National Hat Day doesn’t ask us to pretend recovery is simple. Instead, it gives us a moment to recognize how much adaptability recovery requires and how much it relies on shared effort. On January 15th, wear your favorite hat, but also take a moment to acknowledge the roles you carry for yourself and others. Sometimes recovery isn’t about finding the right hat, it’s about being willing to try on a new one when the time is right.