Can money buy mental health?
Consider wandering through a relatively poor community in the Western world. Stereotypically, these regions have high crime rates, higher rates of drug use and lower levels of physical health. Growing…Continue Reading →
Should cannabis be used to treat mental illness?
Recreational, private use of federally licensed cannabis is scheduled to be legal in Canada as of Oct. 17, 2018. According to Statistics Canada, marijuana use is highest in individuals that…Continue Reading →
'This weather is so bipolar,' and other ways language hurts
I walk down the street trying my best to be mindful, aware and present. I notice company signs I hadn’t before and catch snippets of intelligent chatter on the street.…Continue Reading →
Understanding and harnessing presentation anxiety
Shaky legs, blushing, quick speech with stuttering, sweaty palms – this is how one student experiences anxiety during school presentations. Samantha Burtch Whitteker is among 2.6 per cent of…Continue Reading →
Surviving, maintaining and healing family relationships
Trigger warning: Suicide, family conflict A particularly bad strain of flu afflicted my family. My mom, who practically never gets sick, lay on the couch next to me, wrapped in…Continue Reading →
The online dating site designed for people with mental illness
Find love on the internet can feel like a recipe for disaster; add a cup of mental illness and it’s a whole other story. Seeing this, Jim Leftwich knew he…Continue Reading →
Is there a relationship between acculturation, culture and mental health?
Canada is a diverse population. In 2011, one out of five people in Canada were foreign-born and another one in five were part of an ethnic minority. The following year…Continue Reading →
Navigating youth mental illness with family
Tracey Addison looks down at her feet. She is standing in a garden outside Sunnybrook Hospital, remembering. “I felt as though we were in quicksand. We couldn’t move fast enough…Continue Reading →
In the language of my discontent
Trigger warning: suicide attempt, death Coming out of the rabbit hole is not easy. It involves motivation, patience, a touch of creativity and one rule: don’t let the Queen of…Continue Reading →
Recognizing education culture and its role in mental health
Trigger warning: self-harm, suicide Elizabeth Baker was diagnosed with depression and anxiety in her first year of university, but it was in Grade six that she first thought about self-harm.…Continue Reading →