What teens want their parents to ask 
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What teens want their parents to ask 

Dear Parents and Caretakers,  Something needs to be brought to your attention: your child needs you. This might seem obvious, but I think more time needs to be spent contemplating this statement. It is well known that Gen Zs are significant recipients of mental health struggles. Increased pressures – both academic and societal – as…

When Mysticism Becomes Medicine
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When Mysticism Becomes Medicine

Trauma has become one of the most exciting areas of medical research and therapeutic treatment today. Revolutionary discoveries about the mind-body unity of the human person are bringing hope to many people living with deeply embedded emotional and psychological pain. Books like The Body Keeps the Score by the Dutch scientist Bessel Van Der Kolk…

The shadow of death
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The shadow of death

In May, an expert panel formed by Health Canada in 2021, in collaboration with researchers, stakeholders and clinicians, released a final report to the federal government recommending safeguards, protocols and guidance for providing MAiD (Medical Assistance in Dying) to persons with mental illnesses. This is in preparation for March 17, 2023, when the exclusion of…

In the valley of the shadow of covid
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In the valley of the shadow of covid

Severe pain radiated from the left side of my chest. My lungs felt scraped raw; two rib joints were so swollen they protruded like giant knuckles. “It’s just inflammation from your body fighting covid. There’s nothing we can do,” the attending doctor said, after several tests had normal results. “Go home and rest. Take Advil.”…

Finding life in a cold-water companion
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Finding life in a cold-water companion

When South African documentary filmmaker Craig Foster fell into a personal Slough of Despond, he came close to drowning emotionally and mentally. Netflix’s 85-minute My Octopus Teacher records his year-long recovery with daily baptisms in the eight-degree Centigrade sea off Cape Town. There he discovered he was not alone. As baptism declares, he died to…

Healing in Colour
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Healing in Colour

Mental Health Week is May 3 – 9, and a new art exhibit is highlighting the intersection of race, faith and mental health. Healing in Colour features “Black, Indigenous, and peoples of colour artists from around the world, [and] the show highlights their experiences, wounds, and journeys of healing,” as stated on the event’s website….