Following is a description of three families who have stamped out stigma associated with mental illness by sharing their experiences, whether through talking with other families who needed help, speaking to peer support groups about what works to create healthy relationships, or publicly speaking about the difficulties they face. This helped reduce the stigma that can rob individuals and their families of chances to get help. Family One: The husband is living with bipolar dis

When you see a person overwhelmed with how to change what is not working in their life, they feel sad, hopeless, helpless and unsure of what to do to change their situation. Usually hear “I have tried everything and nothing is changing”. Feeling disappointed and disheartened is a downer. When you see a person uplifted, less helpless, less stress on their face and smiling with hope sends shivers down the spine. Then they exclaim saying: I didn’t tip toe, I decided to have an h

Caring relationships can make a difference. As a family and peer support facilitator in an organization, I offered group sessions with clients and/or the client’s family. I had to earn the clients’ trust before they would share what they truly felt and thought. Connecting with them as they came to the center and meeting them where they were at helped them to get to know me. I told them how I could support them and their family and if they wanted to chat, my office was near th

“Addiction. Self-Sabotage. Procrastination. Laziness. Rage. Chronic Fatigue. And Depression. All are ways that we withhold our full participation in the program of life that we are offered.” – Charles Eisenstein Procrastination plagues me. Recently my office was a total mess. Piles of paperwork everywhere. Time to take action-purging, cleaning and organizing. I was on a roll, feeling uplifted and energized. I took action and I moved mountains. Depression has also always plagu

“There‘s a shift that takes place when you’re talking about the possibilities more than you’re talking about your issues”, Michael Bernard Beckwith How much time in a week do you spend on issues compared to the possibilities? What if you were to shift gears by talking about 5 possibilities for every issue you talk about. Have you ever had a week go well until an incident shakes you up? When asked how your week went, you say “not so good” then proceed to talk about the inciden

Seven days of rich, heartfelt, and soulful conversations with others has spiraled into opening doors for more conversations. When you have people feeling comfortable sharing a personal lived experience, the learning experience is real, raw, and others start sharing their stories. Learning about signs and symptoms of mental health problems is great; however, what is better are individuals sharing their story related to their mental health problems. Multiple times, I have had t

Listening to Oprah this morning, Zainab Salbi wrote this very powerful poem. Her book is mentioned as well, which talks about her life and this poem is part of her book. She talks about how women in war zones get through their life. Illustrating the fortitude of these women, Salbi has penned down a powerful poem that is a part of her book, “If You Knew Me You Would Care.” The poem reads: What if I’m not sadness? What if I’m not grief? What if I’m not my victim’s story, Nor am

Juno is Chad and Heather’s (my son and daughter-in-law) dog who sets his own boundaries. Wow, if Juno can set boundaries, you can do it too. You may remember the article, “Walking the Dog,” it was about Juno. When Chad told Ted and I about how he was setting his boundaries, we howled with laughter!! Juno apparently likes to have his walk in the morning. There are times it doesn’t happen so they let him out to go to the bathroom in the dog run. Well, he wouldn’t go so he would

“Vulnerability is the birth place of innovation, creativity and change,” according to Brene Brown. Think about this statement. Innovation happens through struggle – who do you know who has struggled with mental health, suicide, being homeless, etc. and turned their lives around by starting an organization to help others so they get the help they need? I know of several organizations that got their start this way, such as: Thumbs Up Foundation – https://thethumbsupfoundation.c

“We all need to come together,” is being said more and more in the paper, in political environments and in networking with businesses and charities. I FULLY Agree that, “we all need to come together” to figure out how we are all going to get through this tough economy and manage the struggles that strike without notice. The frustrations, whether it is about how I pay for the increased tax bill or how I deal with the strained relationships in my family, are real and painful. W

You have been receiving our newsletter, kudos to Melissa who does a fabulous makeover every week. Attending a session yesterday, questions that were asked got me thinking about you, the reader, who continues to read our newsletter, and blogs. I am sure you are curious about what the questions are. If you have any comments other than the ones stated, please send them to us because your thoughts may be different from what has already been said. HERE WE GO!! 1. Why would YOU/OTH

The blog this week is for you to think about the quote below. What I am encouraging you to do is think about how you can implement what is said. Families matter more than ever in this world and it seems like struggling with conflict is happening too often. “Conflicts can actually be healthy. People who are capable of expressing their differences without becoming hostile are less likely to suffer from emotional and physical stress and have a much better chance of resolving pro

Who do you trust? Trust is a big issue in society today. When listening to conversations about what is happening in people’s lives, trust is questioned. Who and what can I trust? When I hear stories about who people trust, I listen with both ears open. I had the privilege of speaking to a group of 100 individuals in Wetaskiwin County Friday, March 22. The topic was honest conversations with mental health being part of the discussion. Before the activities were started, the

This is a special guest post by Marcia, client and coach of Cool Family Solutions My daughter was diagnosed with anxiety and depression in January of 2015, when she was 14 years old. Eighteen months later, she attempted suicide. Around that time we were arguing frequently about her missing school. She was refusing counselling and only taking medicine when forced. Also, she was harming herself once a week and wishing to die every day. My biggest fear was losing her. I didn’t s

This is a guest post from a participant in our 10 week sessions. This is her experience in her words. It takes a lot of courage to share and we hope you enjoy hearing a bit about her journey. "My family recently undertook Mona’s 10-week course on communication and understanding of mental health. I can hardly believe what a positive affect it has had on our lives and relationships among our families. Every family faces difficult and emotional times, and we usually lean on each

Lives are BUSY, CHAOTIC and at times so overwhelming it takes your breath away. The experiences of life, especially those hard- hitting ones, can have your knees buckle. Hearing stories from families over 24 years faced with overwhelming situations, it is amazing how many have rebounded and decided to use their experience to help others. Hearing from those who have walked a similar path gives you hope, relief you are not alone and you can learn from their experiences. The one

What you do affects the health and wellness for you and others. Have you tried to help someone who is struggling whether it is a friend, family members or a co-worker? What did you do to help? Be honest with yourself – Tried to fix their situation by telling them do this, do that - OR when you tell them you say “ you should do this or you need to do that” - OR arrange a family meeting, it feels like a bashing session - OR express what is not being done with an edge/sharp tone

SEEKING TO UNDERSTAND What motivates you to make-a-decision? What inspires you to leap into action? What blocks you to make-a-decision or leap into action? Being curious is the road to understanding more about what motivates or inspires you. Something I discovered about myself which surprised me… I like a challenge. The surprise is that I can get very frustrated with challenges then struggle to know what to do. Admitting I don’t know what to do is frustrating because I should