SUMMARY People have become less connected to nature, particularly with increasing urbanization. However, many studies are now clearly demonstrating that nature connectedness is crucial to our physical and mental health, and to the future of our communities’ social, cultural, environmental, and economic well-being. Audrey Hystad, farm manager for the Clubhouse Farm in Kelowna, BC and […]
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NATURE’S PLAN: Using Natural Frameworks to Build Mentally Healthy Communities
SUMMARY Creating mentally healthy communities is becoming an issue of increasing importance. Dr. Marilyn Hamilton, an author and international thought leader, and Mark Holland, an author and award-winning community planner, discuss how we can use what we know about nature to plan, design, and build more livable, socially connected, and mentally healthy communities. They also […]
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WORLD HAPPINESS REPORT Reveals a Bright Light in Dark Times
SUMMARY The World Happiness Report (WHR) uses global survey data annually to report how people in more than 150 countries evaluate their own lives. The findings are also used to rank countries on a scale of well-being from most to least happy. This 10th anniversary edition reveals that while COVID brought considerable pain and suffering, […]
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JO’S JOURNEY: A Personal Story of Healing From Fear & Anxiety
SUMMARY HEADS UP producer Jo de Vries shares her personal story of healing from acute anxiety attacks that started when she was 12 years old. Now in her sixties, and after 20 years of taking two psychotrophic medications, she is in the process of healing with the help of two medical professionals. Family physician/psychotherapist Dr. […]
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SENIORS’ MENTAL HEALTH: Part 2 – Social Influences, Life Circumstances, Personal Choices & Better Care
SUMMARY Senior’s mental health is affected by social threats such as stigma, ageism, and racism, and impacted by individual circumstances such as isolation, loneliness, poverty, poor physical health, lack of independence, and abuse. In Part 2 of this podcast, Marjorie Horne (seniors’ advocate and founder of CareSmart Seniors Consulting), Naomi Mison (caregiver and founder of […]
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SCHIZOPHRENIA: Part 2 – Integrating Bio-Psycho-Social-Vocational-Spiritual Recovery Approaches
SUMMARY In Part 2 of this podcast on Schizophrenia, we’re joined again by Katrina Tinman (peer support worker with lived experience of schizophrenia), Chris Summerville (CEO of the Canadian Schizophrenia Society), and Dr. Phil Tibbo (clinical/research psychiatrist who specializes in psychosis-related illnesses). They dig deep into emerging holistic recovery approaches that integrate biological, psychological, social, […]
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RESILIENCE: Choosing How to Feel, Think & Behave
Video Version Audio Version SUMMARY Resilience is one of the most misunderstood concepts in mental health today. Simply, it is the outcome of optimizing life experience by being mindful about what you can control, can’t control, and have little control over. Join industrial psychologist and human capital specialist Peter Comrie as he explains the differences […]
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SCHIZOPHRENIA: Part 1 – Stories, Signs, Myths & Recovery Movements
SUMMARY Schizophrenia affects about 80 million people from all countries, cultures, ages, abilities, and genders. This two-part podcast explores their widespread challenges, and the hope and healing opportunities available to them and their families via integrated bio-psycho-social-spiritual-vocational therapies. In Part 1, Katrina Tinman (peer support worker with lived experience), Chris Summerville (CEO of the Canadian […]
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SENIORS’ MENTAL HEALTH: Part 1 – Personal Stories, Professional Insights & COVID Reflections
SUMMARY The over-65 age group is the fastest-growing demographic in Canada, with rates of mental illness for seniors over 70 projected to be the highest of any age group by 2041. Add to that the impacts of COVID-19, and you have a complex and costly national challenge that requires urgent attention from all sectors, in […]
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WORKPLACE MENTAL HEALTH: Part 2 – Groundbreaking Union & Business Solutions
SUMMARY While Part 1 of this podcast targets trailblazing research and regulatory approaches to workplace mental health, Part 2 chronicles the evolution of organizational policies, practices, and programs at two very different and unique organizations. Join Quentin Steen (CLAC Labour Relations Representative) and Trever Amendt (AECOM Site Safety Lead, Energy Operations & Maintenance in Lacombe, […]
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WORKPLACE MENTAL HEALTH: Part 1 – Trailblazing Research & Regulatory Approaches
SUMMARY Given that most Canadian workers clock between 35 and 40 hours weekly, it’s vital that time be invested in healthy workplaces that care as much about mental, emotional, and social well-being as they do about physical health. In Part 1 of this podcast, join workplace mental health expert Dr. Merv Gilbert, along with WorkSafeBC’s […]
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BRAIN TOUR: A Superhero’s Mental Health from Both Sides of the Cape
SUMMARY If you’re wearing a mask to hide mental health challenges, why not swap it for a superhero cape and brainpowers so strong they’re sure to save the day! Sharon Blady, PhD (comic book geek, former Manitoba Minister of Health, founder of Speak Up: Mental Health Advocates) and Dr. Simon Trepel (a psychiatrist and member […]
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WEALTH IN MENTAL HEALTH: Mobilizing a Just & Green Recovery Economy
SUMMARY Recovery from COVID-19 provides remarkable opportunities for transition to a just and green economy that would ultimately boost universal mental health. Policy professionals Trish Hennessy (Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives) and Arden Henley (Green Technology Education Centre) talk about transformative concepts such as ‘doughnut economics’, ‘well-being budget’, ‘inclusive economy’, and the ‘three-sided coin’. They […]
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STIGMA: From Stereotyping & Discrimination to Compassion & Inclusion
SUMMARY More than half of the seven million Canadians who face mental health challenges every year, won’t seek help for fear of being stereotyped and discriminated against. To help unravel the complexities of stigma that often bind people with mental illness, we’re joined by Samaria Nancy Cardinal, a Metis woman whose battle with intergenerational trauma […]
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ROLE CALL: Local Governments’ Contribution to Community Mental Health
SUMMARY Citizens expect and deserve mentally healthy communities. To that end, we connected with Ken Christian (City of Kamloops’ mayor and former environmental health professional) and Randy Sunderman (social economist and chair of the Aberdeen Neighbourhood Association) to explore local governments’ unique role in planning and building mentally healthy communities. They gauge Kamloops’ success in […]
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DEPRESSION: Key Links Between Lived Experience & Emerging Science
SUMMARY While Daniel Honke and Dr. Andy Greenshaw are both passionate about mental health, they come at it from vastly different but complementary perspectives. Daniel is an engaging young man who uses lived experience to help others in his community. Andy is a renowned research psychiatrist who collaborates with colleagues around the world, to create […]
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VETERANS’ MENTAL HEALTH: Personal & Scientific Perspectives on Healing
SUMMARY Veteran/advocate Brian McKenna and psychologist Dr. Candice Monson explore veterans’ mental health issues. Drawing on lived experience with PTSD – and the treatments and activism that helped him heal – Brian shares about the psychological challenges and opportunities faced by veterans who’ve served both at home and abroad. Dr. Monson, a clinician and researcher […]
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e-MENTAL HEALTH: Vast and Profound Opportunities for Better Care
SUMMARY Danielle Impey (Mental Health Commission of Canada) and Debra Coffey (Registered Professional Counsellor) explore the emerging field of e-mental health, which uses the Internet and other technologies to provide care faster and from rural and remote locations. Drawing on stories of Canadians using various e-tools effectively, Impey explains the phenomenon and talks about the […]
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MENTAL HEALTH CARE SYSTEMS: Downstream Losses vs Upstream Wins
SUMMARY Drs. Trevor Hancock and Warren Bell share invaluable insights about the inefficiencies of our existing “downstream” mental health care system, and the opportunities provided by an “upstream” approach that better serves individuals, families, workplaces, and communities through prevention and health promotion. Dr. Hancock, a public health scholar, also touches on ‘shit life syndrome’, ‘social […]
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