October 03, 2016

Mental Illness Awareness Week | October 2-8, 2016
Read articles on mental health and illness at the Huffington Post Canada.

June 23, 2016

Dealing with Post-Graduation Stress and Anxiety

Completing a post-secondary degree can cause students to experience a wide range of emotions from happiness to relief and even anxiety. In our lives , transitional periods such as graduating always come with some difficulty but it is important to approach these situations with a positive mind. Here are three tips to help you combat post-graduation stress and anxiety.

A Beginner's Guide to Meditation

Many studies have proven that mindfulness and meditation improves our focus and self-awareness (see post below titled 'mindfulness'). Here are 5 tips to help you get started with your own meditation routine. Read more.

June 10, 2016

Letting go of Resentment

Many of us have experienced a time in our life where we've felt hurt by something that our loved one has done to us. The best approach to achieving a peaceful mind would be to learn how to let go of the resentment that we feel towards this person.Read more

May 31, 2016

Healthy Body, Healthy Mind?

A healthy life begins with a healthy body and a healthy mind. Many studies have shown that physical activity has numerous positive effects on the brain. Here are 19 ways that exercise can lead you to both a healthy body and a healthy mind. Read more

May 05, 2016

Mental Health Week (May 2-8, 2016)

What is Mental Health?  "Mental health is defined as a state of well-being in which every individual realizes his or her own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to her or his community." (World Health Organization)

According to the report Making the Case for Investing in Mental Health in Canada (2012) by the Mental Health Commission of Canada:  "More than 6.7 million people in Canada were living with a mental illness in 2011.  This translates to 1 in 5 people in Canada who are living with a mental illness in any given year. Of these, more than 1 million were children and adolescents between the ages of 9 to 19 years of age.  More than 28% of people aged 20-29 experience a mental illness in a given year.  By the time people reach 40 years of age, 1 in 2 people in Canada will have had or have a mental illness.  About 2.1% of the working population in Canada currently experience mental health problems and illness which can affect their productivity.  Improved management of mental health in the workplace including prevention, early action to combat stress and identify problems could decrease losses to productivity significantly."

If you or someone that you know is suffering from a mental health problem, reach out for help. Your mental health matters!

April 27, 2016

Mindfulness

Evidence produced by researcher show that mindfulness can have a positive impact on people's health. Read More

April 18, 2016

The Courage To Be Imperfect

The concept of the Courage to Be Imperfect was developed by Dr. Rudolf Dreikurs. When we have the courage to be imperfect, we can focus on the present time rather than worry about what has happened in the past.

Some points to consider:

1. Individuals should be encouraged, not expected, to pursue perfection.
2. It is better to have the desire to be useful than to have the desire for self- elevation. The latter is accompanied by constant fear of making mistakes.
3. Too many human relationships are mistake-centered and fault-finding.
4. Mistakes are unavoidable and, in most cases, less important than what the individual does after he or she has made a mistake.
5. Mistakes are not failures…they are aids to learning.
6. Are you motivated primarily to help others, or to be superior to them?
7. Develop a sense of your own personal strength and self worth.
8. Develop the courage to cope with the challenges of living.

“We have to learn the art, and to realize that we are good enough as we are because we will never be better regardless of how much more we may know, how much more skill we may acquire, how much status or money or what-have-you. If we can’t make peace with ourselves as we are, we will never be able to make peace with ourselves. And this requires the courage to be imperfect; requires the realization that I am no angel, that I am not superhuman, that I make mistakes, that I have faults; but I am pretty good because I don’t have to be better than the others.” – Rudolf Dreikurs, MD

Retrieved From: http://doc.mopsohio.com/PDF/Handouts/General/Courage%20to%20be%20imperfect.pdf

March 17, 2016

Coping with Worry

We all engage in worry at some point in our lives; but, there are times when our worry can be overwhelming and time consuming. Are you looking for ways to get a handle on your worries? Here are some tips for coping with worry.
Read More

February 21, 2016

Inside Out - Psychology in the Movies

The movie “Inside Out” is about a hockey-loving 11-year-old girl from Minnesota named Riley whose five emotions – Joy, Sadness, Fear, Disgust and Anger - come to life in her mind. These emotions influence her actions and memories, and when she and her family moves to San Francisco they help her to adapt and navigate life in a new city, house and school. This film shows us the complexity and depth of our emotions and how they play an important role in our lives. It is a wonderful and unique perspective of expression of emotions and human behaviour. If you haven’t seen this movie as yet, it’s worth watching and will be fun for the entire family. Here is the trailer for the movie.