Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
Have you ever felt at a loss of what to say or do when a friend is going through a mental health difficulty? Or do you have an answer for their problem before they have finished telling you what their problem is? Not having all the answers when supporting a friend experiencing a mental health difficulty is not necessarily a bad thing. Resist the urge to fix. I dive deep into the topic of “support does not equal fixing” in my MHCC Catalyst article ‘It’s Broke- And Don’t Fix it.’
The Problem Solver
The wonderful, caring, hard-to-see-others-in-pain, jump-into-action-and-want-to-make-it-all-better person… you relate? It can be uncomfortable seeing someone going through a mental well-being decline. Resist the urge to make it all better. Instead, pause and listen. Providing that safe space and really listening, I mean REALLY listening can be powerfully healing.
Don’t take their problem from them, trust them to deal with it in their own way. Do your best to understand the person even when, from your lens, they may not make sense. Give them enough room to discover for themselves why they feel upset and enough time to think for themselves what’s best. Hold back the desire to give them “good” advice.
The “Advice-or”
“Good” advice is relative: what may be good for me may not be for you. When you jump into “fix it” mode, the person sharing becomes aware they are not being listened to and possibly feels unheard and rejected. You may be trying to sort out the details (the who, what, when, where) and are not aware of the feelings or emotions behind the words.
A new study identifies 27 categories of emotion and shows how they blend together in our everyday experience. Most of us were never taught how to describe or name our feelings. Psychology once assumed that most human emotions fall within the universal categories of happiness, sadness, anger, surprise, fear, and disgust. Brene Brown hosts an informative, human centered TV series called Atlas of the Heart which dives deep in defining emotions, feelings and the words used to describe them.
As a psychotherapist, you may assume that I’m naturally a really great listener—I’m not! I really need practice at it. I’m already thinking of a response before the other person has finished speaking, which creates disconnection. Or if there is a pause, I jump in with the word that I think they are thinking of and 90% of time I’ve got the wrong word! As a result, the person may feel rushed, thinking, “I better hurry or I won’t be able to get a word in edgewise,” or start to shut down and disengage. Really listening provides an environment where the person can show up authentically, with more of an opportunity to receive support.
Ask, Don’t Tell
To truly support someone, “help me help you” really is a powerful approach. How do we do that? The first step is asking them! For example, ask questions like:
- “How can I best support you?”
- “What do you think would happen if you did this or that?”
- “How can I support you today?”
- “What does help look like for you?”
Getting clarity on what’s being said, by paraphrasing and saying, “What I heard you say is” or “My understanding is…Is that correct?”
Don’t assume how the person is feeling or what they “should” do. I often say, “don’t let anyone should on you today and/or don’t should on yourself.”
The Empathizer
Empathy is not connecting to an experience; it’s connecting to the emotions that underpin an experience. Sympathy is “feeling for me” and can be perceived as condescending. Empathy is “feeling with me.”
In order for one to be empathetic, it requires seeing the world as others see it, or seeing it from their perspective. Stay away from judgment, not putting our beliefs on how things “should” be onto others. Do your best to understand another person’s feelings and communicate your understanding of that person’s feelings. Be aware of your own feelings and boundaries.
Listening Fatigue
Know that when you really listen it can be tiring, it takes energy. It may also stir up emotions for you or trigger memories of previous experiences. Self-care is an integral part of being an effective listener. Some may say self-care is selfish, especially when others have “got it worse.” Selfish is when you do things that are a detriment to others; self-care is when you have self-interest and are in care of yourself for the benefit of others (and yourself). This is a critically important distinction.
When you are thanked for listening, accept the gift of gratitude, and let them know it was good to know that you have been helpful. This also helps the person not feel like they’ve just burdened you with their “problems.”
When listening and supporting a friend experiencing a mental health difficulty, practice listening as a receiver, not as a critic, and practice to understand the other person rather than to achieve either agreement from, or change in, that person.
“To be fully seen by somebody, then, and to be loved anyhow—this is a human offering that can border on miraculous” – Elizabeth Gilbert
Author: Yvette Murray
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It’s time to talk about mental health in football
The world of professional sports brings to mind scenes of packed stadiums, screaming fans, and lavish contracts for the most celebrated athletes, who display dazzling feats of skill and endurance. But this image of players fulfilling a life’s dream doesn’t always square with reality: the challenges many of them face in maintaining their mental well-being. The truth is, many elite athletes are struggling. Ahead of the 109th Grey Cup, The Catalyst looks at the way organizations like the Saskatchewan Roughriders are joining with others to tackle the issue.
According to a recent study in Psychology of Sport and Exercise, more than 40 per cent of 186 elite national team athletes in Canada “met the cut-off criteria for one or more mental disorders,” with stress and training load being “significant predictors of depression and anxiety.” To understand why, it’s important to acknowledge the realities athletes run into, both on and off the field.
Before reaching professional or top amateur levels, competitors must prove their skills in junior, university, and semi-professional leagues. This often means having to balance their sports aspirations with school, work, and family obligations, not to mention the growing public profile that comes with each success.
“It can be a grind at times,” said Ty Logan, a former university athlete and current professional defenceman with the Albany FireWolves of the National Lacrosse League. “When you’re in school, your weekends are spent travelling on a packed bus between cities, while trying to finish assignments and catching up on the lectures you missed during the week. It’s late nights in the library followed by early mornings at the gym. If you’re not careful with your time, it’s easy to fall behind in one way or another.”
Only as good as your last game
The expectation to perform in the midst of multiple obstacles and responsibilities can be a huge source of stress for young athletes. “You definitely feel the pressure from both sides,” Logan said. “Even when you turn professional, there are no days off, and you never know when it might be your last contract or last game in the league. You have to try to block out the outside world and focus on playing your best.”
This pressure intensifies for emerging athletes with the increasingly slim chances of becoming a professional in any given sport. According to the National Collegiate Athletic Association, around four per cent of all college athletes will reach a professional league or the Olympic level. Even fewer will stay there for more than a handful of games.
When you have a large group of highly motivated, competitive athletes battling for a finite number of spots, with the promise of fortune and fame on the line, it’s easy to see how the pressure can mount for aspiring professional athletes. Add in the need to maintain grades and a part-time job to help pay the bills, and the risk to one’s mental well-being becomes just as clear.
Knowing this, the Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC) adapted The Working Mind (TWM) training program to address these issues. TWM Sports modules focus on scenario-based, practical applications for both athletes and coaches which are grounded in the voices of people with lived and living experience of mental illness
Research shows that coaches fulfil multiple roles as motivators, counsellors, advisers, and parental substitutes — all of which require considerable emotional labour. And athletes must fully understand their own mental health — and that of those around them — to maximize their capabilities. To address these requirements, each of these TWM Sports courses provides tools and skills for adverse situations and the ability to support teammates — skills that apply just as much to people in beer and recreational leagues as they do to top athletes.
A nation of athletes
According to a 2016 Statistics Canada poll, 27 per cent of those age 15 and older regularly participate in sports. That’s more than eight million people across the country in some form of sporting activity, with fun, fitness, and physical health cited as the main benefits. But beyond the average individual, the trend shifts. For elite athletes, who dedicate their lives to professional competition, sports can change from a positive influence on physical health to something that puts mental wellness at risk. For instance, when it means sacrificing friendships and one’s personal life to the pursuit of sporting greatness.
This was one of many insights that emerged out of the development process for TWM Sports. The MHCC partnered with the Saskatchewan Roughrider Foundation to pilot the program with players and coaches, along with other elite athletes from Saskatchewan communities.
After Cindy Fuchs, the foundation’s executive director, saw the potential of having a TWM program designed specifically for athletes and coaches, she immediately contacted the MHCC to ask how she and her team could get involved.
“The Roughrider Foundation is dedicated to supporting health, education, and amateur football in our local communities, and the TWM Sports program weaves perfectly into those pillars,” she said. For Fuchs, TWM also aligns with the foundation’s other initiatives, including Win with Wellness and Game Changers Playbook, a collaborative project with the Saskatchewan Ministry of Education to address youth mental wellness in the province.
Throughout the pilot phase, a common thread in the feedback she received from participants was about how impactful the sessions were. “It forced them to reflect on their own mental well-being,” she said. “I think a lot of the players didn’t realize the stress they were going through until they reflected on it.”
By implementing a box-breathing technique from the program into his game-day routines, one kicker was also able to help his on-field performance. And the program also had a positive impact on team morale.
“You can see that the players who have taken the training have a special bond,” Fuchs added. “They know they can be open with each other about how they feel without any judgment.”
It’s this sense of openness — and the de-stigmatization of mental health in sports — that motivated the foundation to spread the word about the program and cover the entire cost of TWM Sports training for all university athletes in Saskatchewan.
Starting with the University of Saskatchewan, all student athletes — regardless of their sport — will have the opportunity to take the program. In addition, all Roughrider players who give presentations for the foundation’s in-school programs will undergo training, allowing them to share the lessons they learned through the course with young people in the community.
“We want as many athletes as possible to have the opportunity to experience this program — it’s that impactful,” Fuchs said. “How cool would it be for a player to be able to tell their coach they aren’t having a good day and not have to worry about being benched or blacklisted? It’s about mutual respect and openness to have this dialogue between the two sides.”
It’s Movember, the month when we focus on men’s mental health and raise awareness and improve mental and physical health outcomes for men around the world. Some show their support with symbolic moustaches, while others lend their voice to the overdue conversation about men’s mental health.
We have long advocated for increased awareness of the unique mental health realities faced by men, who are less likely to recognize, talk about, and seek treatment for their illnesses.
With the right investments, we can turn the tide on men’s mental health, improving outcomes and promoting resiliency along the way.
Here are some of our resources that can help you learn about the issue and share your own story:
Of the estimated 4,000 suicide deaths in Canada each year, close to 75 per cent are men. This resource summarizes the key takeaways from the Mental Health and Suicide Prevention in Men: Evidence Brief. Based on findings from the Evidence Brief, this resource highlights statistics on men’s mental health and suicidal behaviours, factors that contribute to their increased risk of suicide and suicide deaths, subgroups who are at higher risk of suicide, and the potential and observed impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on men’s mental health and suicide. The resource also highlights best and promising suicide prevention practices as well as resources for those looking for further support.
In addition to summarizing the evidence on factors that lead to increased risk of suicide and suicide deaths among men, subgroups that are at higher risk, and the potential and observed impact of COVID-19 on men as it relates to mental health and suicide, this brief will highlight best and promising suicide prevention practices.
People with substance use concerns are among those most likely to report thoughts about suicide, according to our latest Leger poll. While everyone has been affected by stresses brought on by two 5. years of the pandemic, it’s clear that not everyone has been impacted equally. Thoughts of suicide are also more common among youth, ethno-racialized groups and people who are unemployed.
Middle-aged men (40 to 60) die by suicide more than anyone, including young people and women (Statistics Canada, 2019). Men are often socialized not to talk about their emotions. As a result, men as a group may mask their stress and deal with emotional pain through harmful behaviours and actions, and sometimes suicide, instead of seeking help.
Suicide prevention is everyone’s business. Preventing a death by suicide does not always need an expert; it is something we all can do. We can all learn skills to help promote life and help someone struggling with thoughts of suicide. Join the Mental Health Commission of Canada and the Centre for Suicide Prevention as we discuss suicide prevention in the workplace.
Attention around men’s health—particularly mental health—is gaining momentum in Canada. While men and women both live with mental health problems and illnesses, their experiences can be very different. Although rates of mental illness are comparable between men and women, men are less likely to recognize, talk about, and seek treatment for their illness.
Movember is upon us, the campaign that urges men to beat back stigma and conquer shame by opening up about their lived experience of mental illness. There are several platforms that encourage men to be raw and honest, like Michael Landsberg’s Sick Not Weak website, where would-be contributors can share their vulnerability in the name of collective strength.
In 2018, Newfoundland and Labrador’s Burin Peninsula became the first of eight communities to sign on to the Mental Health Commission of Canada’s (MHCC’s) Roots of Hope project — a community-led suicide prevention initiative that aims to prevent suicide with strategies adapted to the local context.
9. Tough Talk
Of the roughly 4,000 suicide deaths in Canada each year, 75 per cent are men. For men between the ages of 15 and 39, suicide is the second leading cause of death (after accidental death). Clearly, we have a lot to talk about.
Author: Mental Health Commission
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A broader term captures the rich diversity within communities. Why we use ‘ACB’ over ‘Black’
This article is part of the Catalyst series called Language Matters.
In early 2021, the Mental Health Commission of Canada adjusted its language guidelines and started using the term African, Caribbean, and Black (ACB) when referring to the diaspora who were often grouped under the heading, “Black.” Prior to the change, Black was broadly applied to anyone with dark skin, regardless of their cultural identity or heritage. Imagine the differences of experience and perceptions between a multigenerational Black Nova Scotian and a newcomer from Gambia.
While my family hails from Barbados, I was born in London (England) and grew up in Montreal. I self-identify as a Black woman, a Canadian, and a Caribbean, and I’m not conflicted by those intersecting titles. On countless occasions, people have attempted to “other” me through comments or questions, now identified as microaggressions. “You speak so well,” one of them said, surprised as if, despite my going to the same schools and receiving the same education since age three, my Blackness would subvert those teachings. My personal favourite is, “Where are you really from?” — because Montreal and London didn’t fit the expected answer.
My Caribbean background has often felt like a cozy place of retreat in the face of this insistence that I am not Canadian. I imagine that for folks born and raised in Canada with parents and grandparents who had the same experience, these questions would be more than frustrating. If you can spend your whole life in a place, be taught at the same schools, eat the same food, and still be considered an outsider, it is like remaining stranded on the ancestral slave ship, belonging neither to the new world nor the old.
Our identities are wrapped up in myriad little and big things that give us definition and grounding. What we are called matters. Those names do more than identify our skin colour. They reflect our experiences and knowledge. I have no idea what it would be like to arrive as an adult in a new country and have to fit into a different, often unwelcoming culture. Nor do I want to maneuver through the expectations of those who assume that this is my reality. Whether here by choice or by birth, we are Canadian. Like my fellow citizens of Italian, German, or other descent, I also proudly enjoy the rich offerings of my Caribbean history.
Setting the tone
I don’t blame people for feeling confused or even frustrated with the evolving use of terms. They are legion and often come with an array of confusing and (at times) contradictory explanations. I spent many years explaining to friends and neighbours that I was not “coloured” but “Black.” Then, some well-meaning collective determined that “people of colour” was acceptable. Years later, after moving through the terms “visible minority” and “racialized communities,” Black Lives Matter blew into the media spotlight with “Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour” (BIPOC). At that time, it had become more important to acknowledge that a disproportionate number of ACB and Indigenous people were being incarcerated and attacked by police or denied access to health care (the list goes on), that their realities were different from others. The debate over the merits of capitalizing the “b” in “Black” is forged in the same social furnace. The use of uppercase is an attempt to recognize the shared history of violence, oppression, creativity, and triumph. Though it may seem like a simple grammatical issue, it covers a host of previously ignored or denied experiences.
These conversations reflect a complex and ever-changing social dynamic. It isn’t as simple as saying, opinions vary, or minds have changed. At their heart they reflect emerging knowledge, a growing awareness. More voices are being heard, and that results in more measures being taken, more information being gathered. Consider how hard it is to talk about the disproportionate police-on-ACB violence when authorities refuse to capture skin colour in their reports. It took a collective of intrepid reporters working nationally to collect, collate, and track how many ACB people had been shot by police before those numbers forced authorities to acknowledge that reality. Armed with the facts — the evidence of racism’s impact — people could suddenly be heard when they said, Don’t call me that. Don’t lump me into a broad group. My experiences are different.
Names matter. Using ACB rather than Black (if preferred) is not a new politically correct affectation. It’s a respectful reflection of the very real and very different experiences of people who may share nothing more than similar skin tones.
Debra Yearwood
Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
I used to be a book snob. OK – if I’m honest, there is still something about books that sets my pulse racing, be it their light earthy scents, the textured feeling of the pages between my fingers or the sound of crisp pages rustling as I turn them gently – give me a used bookstore and I will see you in a few hours. I remember when I moved overseas for university, I got a Kindle because it was practical – I couldn’t bring my bookshelves, after all – but I never really loved it. I was always, through and through, a book person.
So, imagine my horror when, in the process of my most recent depressive episode, my concentration got so bad that I couldn’t even read. Books, which before then had been my comfort and my escape, suddenly escaped me entirely. I didn’t know what to do. I was entirely forlorn.
Then a friend suggested that I try audiobooks. I scoffed. I was not the kind of person who listened to audiobooks.
But the thought niggled at the back of my mind. I was missing reading. I was missing learning. I was missing new ideas.
When the opportunity came to try two audiobooks for free, my wife strongly suggested that I try it. (In fact, I think the conversation went something like, “Try it. I am tired of hearing you whine that you miss books. It’s free, so you’re going to pick two books and you’re going to listen to them both to give it a good try. And if it doesn’t work after that, fine.” And like the smart wife that I am, I said “Yes dear.”)
I scoured the catalogue and chose two books that looked interesting, and pressed download.
Don’t tell my wife – she was right.
I couldn’t read my beloved books, but as I laid on the couch unable to get up (due to the depression) I could listen. Those times that I could get up to take a COVID walk around the block, I could listen. If I made it out of my house onto the bus, I could learn new things, I could start new conversations, I could keep my brain active. Audiobooks became a bridge to the cognitive skills that were so much in decline two years into my bipolar depression. They came to bolster my self-esteem at a time when I was convinced that I had become stupid and slow. They became a lifeline and a window out onto the world that seemed so far away.
Now, all audiobooks are not created equal, nor will they work for everybody. For one thing, at 10+ hours for the average book, it needs to interest you, but also the voice, accent and cadence of the narrator must also be appealing (I found that out the hard way!) You also have to be reading the right kinds of books. If you are trying to study or take notes, audiobooks are difficult (or impossible) to notate or reference, so keep that in mind. Finally, there are a variety of shorter self-published essay-type or unedited texts interspersed amongst blockbusters and indie favourites, so make sure you pay attention to what you are spending your credits on. But all in all, the subscriptions and costs of individual books are generally reasonable (depending on how voracious a reader you are) and are usually pretty customizable. My wife and I even share an account, so that we can share books and credits, which helps us make it work.
And just one more thought – they have some great self-help and psychology books available for download. It makes it so easy to round out your library, lift your spirits with a good read and access some useful resources for self-understanding and self-care.
As a former (recovering?) book snob, I think there are far worse things in life than trading your glasses for earphones and enjoying the escape of storytelling once again. Mental illness already robs us of so much of the simple pleasures of life. If there is a way to get some joy back it would be such a waste to deprive ourselves of it. So, take it from my wife: pick two books and listen to them both to give it a good try. And if it doesn’t work for you, fine. And then don’t tell her that she was right. Her head will only swell further.
Author: Jessica Ward-King
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Are you having a lightbulb moment?
The SPARK Knowledge Translation Program charts a path for those with an idea to improve research and practice around mental health, substance use, or addiction. A look at the Grand Council Treaty #3 project, which serves as a mental health life-raft for 28 communities.
In the early days of COVID-19, Darlene Curci was taking note of the challenges in Kenora, Fort Frances, and Dryden. She is the Indigenous systems coordinator for Grand Council Treaty #3, which comprises 28 First Nation communities across 142,000+ square kilometres in northwest Ontario and southeast Manitoba.
“A lot of things were happening on the ground while we were going through lockdown,” she recalled. “Our health team was being deployed to help our communities through COVID by providing resources.”
As she worked, Curci was able to observe the evolving needs and challenges of coping with the pandemic. “Some of the communities are isolated and have few resources, which must then be shared across a large geographical area,” she said. “We don’t have specialized resources to address mental health or addiction issues. Psychiatrists have to fly in from Toronto, or else people must go to Winnipeg for specialized services.”
While those services may be rooted in a clinical practice, Treaty #3 communities have land-based, traditional, or combined approaches that include Western models of health and wellness. As Curci was looking for a way to bridge these approaches for Treaty #3 communities, she saw a social media posting about the Mental Health Commission of Canada’s SPARK program. After seeing how SPARK works to ensure success, she applied to the program — which includes 16 hours of workshop time and a one-year followup mentorship — to turn that idea into action.
Connecting the dots
SPARK’s Knowledge Translation Program seeks to provide the tools and resources needed to close the gap between what we know and what we do in the mental health and substance use fields. It gives people who have the germ of an idea — the spark — the means to foster positive change in their communities. As studies show, that process normally takes several years. But the SPARK Innovation to Implementation (I2I) framework can dramatically reduce that time.
Recent graduates (or SPARKies) include the Writers Collective of Canada, a charity that creates workshops for those under-represented in society. They partnered with Veterans’ organizations to offer expressive writing workshops as a non-clinical health intervention. Another charitable organization called Body Brave also worked with SPARK to help address service gaps for people seeking support for disordered eating.
The SPARK program asks applicants to focus on a problem they’d like to address and provides coaching and mentorship to participants across the seven I2I steps:
- State the purpose
- Select an innovation
- Specify actors and actions
- Identify agents of change
- Design the knowledge translation plan
- Implement
- Evaluate
For Curci, “the exercise provides a rigour that focuses the mind while also balancing the need to be agile and adaptable in working with different communities, specialties, levels of expertise, and ways of communicating. When I was going through the application process, I had to write out my intention, and that helped me focus on where I wanted to go with my idea.”
Over the course of the program, she developed the key output — The Grand Council Treaty #3 Mental Health Survival Guide Toolkit — which now serves as a “mental health life-raft” for all of its First Nation communities.
“It was a challenge to bring great value to the community by analyzing a large volume of information and conveying it in such a way that it would be useful to them,” she said. “But in the end, that process helped me reconnect with people in a less intrusive and more engaging way.”
A SPARK planning session from February 2020.
The 50-page booklet includes practical advice on how to respond while in crisis, guidelines for engaging with Elders, practical hang-on-the-fridge lists with key phone numbers, colouring pages, worksheets to assist with stressful times, and tips for interacting with people based on where they’re at. For example, a section for teens and youth discusses boundaries, pointers on creative expression as a form of wellness, and red-light/green-light examples of healthy relationships.
The booklet is based on Ga-nan-da-wis (good health), a therapeutic concept rooted in traditional and cultural healing approaches to achieve emotional and mental balance, culturally and spiritually. Also included are mental health tips for parents, activity suggestions for Elders — like taking a walk or having a sweat with people in your bubble — and those contending with the cumulative and collective effects of historical (or intergenerational) trauma. Substance use, addiction, family violence, and suicide prevention are all addressed, along with isolation, loneliness, and finding balance when using technology.
Curci’s project is rooted in the Minobimaadziwin strategy (cited below) developed by Treaty #3 organizations, Elders, and community members, and was launched as a guiding framework in December 2019. Its 13 values are a throughline connecting Indigenous knowledge, wellness, and current realities related to COVID-19.
Grand Council Treaty #3 Minobimaadziwin Strategy
- Unified approach
- Engage Elders
- Promote cultural way of life
- Support Anishinaabemowin as healing mechanism
- Partnership and network development
- Address root causes of mental health
- Build community capacity
- Education and prevention centered
- Treaty #3-specific tools and training — Promote education and awareness on COVID-19 prevention practices
- Culturally safe services
- Healing rooted in traditional knowledge and practice-land based approach
- Respect treaty rights and relationships
- Every door is the right door
These guiding principles are informed by Treaty #3 traditions. “We are very strong and focused in our traditional ways,” Curci said. “We have developed our own child-care law, health law, and natural resource law — Manito Aki Inakonigaawin — it is the framework for how we do business.”
Her survival guide toolkit was launched during Mental Health Week in May 2021. After all 28 communities received an initial box of booklets, an increasing demand led to a subsequent reprint of 2,000 more copies. People see great value in what it offers, often using different resources for their specific needs. They tear out pages to post near their desks or take photos of the contents that help them most in challenging times.
“In a moment of distress, when things seem impossible, it’s a way to check in on yourself,” Curci said. In addition to being the creator of the booklet — she uses the tools herself. “I find it relaxing,” she said, referring to the colouring pages, along with activities like 10 Minutes to Reflect on Your Day (to build self-esteem) and the My Moods exercise.
Social workers also appreciate the quick tips to help guide people through thoughts of suicide by discussing risk and protective factors and providing counselling helplines, in addition to traditional guidance on grief and loss. The booklet’s foreword from the Grand Chief notes that “everyone’s mental health needs are different.” Rather than put forward well-intentioned platitudes or oversimplifications, his message focuses on the importance of asking for help when it is needed, “because there is always hope for new and better day.”
Learn more about Grand Council Treaty #3.
Fateema Sayani
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A popular quote by Wayne Dyer goes “If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change”. Perhaps changing the way we look at what constitutes a healthy workplace may change the fact that psychological health problems are costing the Canadian economy around $51 billion per year, $20 billion of which results from work-related causes.
Recent events have highlighted the need for change in how we do business, manage operations, and provide psychological safe space for the workforce. What we perceived as “working” before, it would seem, is no longer working.
Creating and fostering a psychologically safe workplace can feel scary. Change can feel like that. A psychologically safe workplace is one where every reasonable effort is made to prevent harm to mental health through negligent, reckless, or deliberate conduct. The National Standard of Canada has 13 Psychological Factors for Psychological Health and Safety in The Workplace. At this point, its a voluntary standard, however I believe that it will become a requirement, such as having the standard of Emergency First Aid trained individuals in workplaces.
I’ll share with you some observations and ideas on how to nurture a psychologically safe workplace. Some guidance for both the employer AND employee- yes, it’s a team effort.
Reducing Stigma
We all have mental health just like we all have physical health. Our degree of mental and/or physical health can change based on many factors. Mental health does not discriminate. In the Mental Health First Aid certification course, we share a video of managers and staff in the workforce sharing their self-stigma around having a mental health problem, illness and/or crisis. It helps people to understand that it is possible to be a leader or a good employee despite living with a mental health disorder. One participant was surprised after watching the video, recognizing that she used to work with someone in that video. She shared that if she had known what that person was experiencing, it would have changed the way they interacted, the dynamic of their challenging relationship and would have helped the participant with her own decline in mental well-being. The more open we are to talking about our experiences, the less stigma for those living with a mental health disorder. You never know who you may be helping.
Looking back at my life, I can recall situations in the workplace, and thinking no wonder I felt that way and/or reacted that way. Being aware of the signs/ symptoms of a mental well-being decline for yourself and others provides the opportunity for support in recovery, yes, even at work.
The Human Leader
Leaders are only human after all and are not immune to having real human challenges, just like anyone. In a leadership role, the demands of managing performance, operations, productivity, and results are only compounded by the challenges of being responsible for teams and people. The side effects of those challenges can have a human impact too, emotions, stress, anxiety, cognitive behaviour, to name a few. One person in a leadership role spoke to their experience of anxiety; “I have anxiety and I’m not ashamed of it. When I feel the symptoms of anxiety, I know what I need to do to encourage calm”. They also went on to say, “with the proper tools and support systems, someone living with a mental health disorder can work in a leadership role”. The Manager’s Toolkit created by the Mental Health Commission of Canada, offers managers a range of practical strategies and examples to support mental health and well-being for their onsite and remote teams — and for themselves.
Should I Stay or Go Now
I’ve worked with several companies over the past few months that have shared their concerns that come with the expectation of employees to return to work on location. Some companies have “put their foot down” and mandated a return to work on site. As a result, staff may choose to go elsewhere and/or it can create an unhealthy working environment.
An executive who still works from home shared with me that having the option to work from home provides them the opportunity for a better work/homelife balance. Trust is required that the workload gets done, however with the flexibility, the employee can balance work, family, and life in a more productive flow. Recently, employers are becoming more open to providing autonomy, understanding that the marker is, whether at home or on site that the work gets done.
Job Demands
Companies are now including a list of physical, cognitive, and psychological demands in their job descriptions. This provides the opportunity for the potential employee to be aware of what the demands are and whether they feel it’s a fit for them – no surprises. Perhaps the most notable of the many demands in this evolving world of work is the need for emotional intelligence, the ability to develop and maintain good relationships, communicate clearly, influence others, work well in a team, and manage conflict. Abilities and skills that come hand-in-hand with self-awareness, balance, wellness, and good mental health.
Boundaries
Getting clarity on your own boundaries is integral to a psychologically safe workplace. Be aware and know where you begin and where you end with respect to your boundaries for time, physical, personal, relationship, and so on. A formula that has worked well in my life is this: awareness,+ accepting + action= change. Before we can make any change, we need to be aware of what we are doing, choosing a different action equals change.
For example, you are on a major deadline, time is of the essence and a co-worker comes into the office and starts to tell you about their “horrible” weekend. You stop what you are doing and listen. All the while, your pulse is elevated, and you are stressing about how you are going to get this project done on time with this delay. You really aren’t listening. Having clear boundaries may sound like this, “I’d love to hear about your weekend, however I’m just in the middle of this project that is due. Is there another time we can connect when I can be more focused on you?”
What if you are that person who wants to share about the “horrible” weekend. Having someone to vent to can be helpful. Perhaps approaching the person like this, “I just had a horrible weekend, I could really use an ear. Do you have the emotional space and is this a good time for me to share with you about my experiences this past weekend?”
Maintaining boundaries helps manage resentments, frustrations, and hurt feelings that can snowball into discourse and create an unhealthy work environment.
“When you say ‘yes’ to others, make sure you’re not saying ‘no’ to yourself.”- Paulo Coelho
Author: Yvette Murray
Lives in Tiny Beaches on Georgian Bay, which she considers her sanctuary. She believes that being surrounded by nature does wonders for her mental health. Yvette is the author of The Mental Health Contagion: Navigating Yourself Through a Loved One’s Mental Well-Being Decline (forthcoming). Yvette is a mental health advocate, influencer, and keynote speaker; a psychotherapist; and a facilitator for the MHCC’s Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) virtual certification program. MHFA is available for those who are supporting adults, youth, and/or older adults. It trains participants on how to recognize a loved one’s mental health problem, have that conversation, and get the best help.
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With stigmatizing language, things can get pretty cloudy
This article is part of the Catalyst series called Language Matters.
“I hate this weather, it’s so bipolar. One minute it’s sunny and the next it’s raining. I never know how to dress in the morning.” I roll my eyes at my friend, and she apologizes. “I’m sorry. I forgot.” She’s not the first to use my diagnosis to describe something negative, and she won’t be the last, but it stings every time.
Adopting clinical terminology to emphasize our experiences happens all the time. How often have you heard someone say they’re OCD when they really mean they’re organized or respond to a new story with “That’s so crazy! That’s insane!”? We’ve all heard such things (or even said them ourselves). But just because something is familiar doesn’t make it OK. Using that kind of hyperbole reduces mental illness while doing a disservice to the people who live with those concerns. It also affects how we think about mental health conditions.
It’s called associative activation, and it happens when we unconsciously attach an emotion to an idea. Usually, the process is so quick that we’re not even aware we’re making a link. Yet our brains are hard at work producing a response to the words we use and hear. When my friend is talking about the weather, she’s also associating a negative emotion with bipolar disorder. It sounds innocent enough, but it has a lasting effect. And it’s one of the ways stigmatizing language is able to flourish.
So what’s the big deal? No need to be such a stickler. They’re just words.
Actually, those words do have a big impact on people. Think of a time when someone said something hurtful to you. How did it made you feel? For those living with mental health concerns, it can be disappointing to learn that someone you thought of as an ally has unconsciously held negative feelings about your condition. It can also be frustrating to hear your diagnosis being reduced for the sake of a quip or to exaggerate a point. Of course, anyone within earshot of that conversation about the weather is likewise forming their own negative views about bipolar disorder. What might their reaction be if they or someone they love is diagnosed a mental health condition?
Language is constantly evolving as we understand more about mental health and strive to do better. While it can be difficult to keep track of shifting ideas around acceptable language, it’s certainly possible. A good place to start is to learn about stigmatizing language and some of the available alternatives.
Another thing to remember is to try not to get defensive if someone asks you to adjust your language. It probably just means they care enough to want to keep you from making the same mistake again. Many of us instinctively resist the idea of removing language from our vocabulary, but it does get easier with practice. And since choosing other words is one of the simplest ways that we can all help reduce mental health stigma, it’s worth the effort.
My friend and I put our umbrellas away. The sun was now peeking out from behind the clouds and warming our faces. “What I meant to say is that the weather is unpredictable these days. I should have worded it differently. I spoke without thinking. I’ll do better next time.” And for a long time now, that’s a promise she has kept.
Find other articles in the series: Person-first language.
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Belgian singer Stromae — whose European hits meld weighty themes with clubby beats — touches on the complexities of mental health on his recent album, Multitude. Ahead of his North American tour, Florence K — CBC Music host, singer, author of three books on mental health, and PhD candidate in neuropsychology — looks at its lyrics and layers.
We read it everywhere. We see it everywhere. We say it everywhere. There’s no place for shame or guilt when mental suffering knocks on our door and no valid reason to maintain stigma around mental health. It took a lot of speeches, awareness campaigns, expert testimonials, and hashtags to spread that message until it became loud and clear and to make inroads into social norms still enclosed by taboos.
This work has taken decades.
Yet in one song — in just a few sentences — Stromae challenges an entire generation, and he needn’t say more. A loose translation of the lyrics from “L’Enfer” (Hell) is at once hard-hitting and spare:
I’m not alone…To say that many others have already thought about it, but still, I feel alone…As a result, I sometimes have suicidal thoughts and I’m not very proud of it…These thoughts that make my life hell. —
While words are his craft, Stromae is a man of very few. His raps are slow, and he never crams syllables into the same verse. The effect is like an underline — his words stand out and paint precise images that linger and stick in your mind — you can’t unsee them.
Pretty pictures aside, there’s also plenty of straight talk throughout the album. On the same track, Stromae steps out from behind the metaphors to discuss his mental health challenges and the sense of shame that would wash over him, despite his best efforts to be vocal and challenge stigmas.
The echo of this refrain has resonated in millions of hearts, validating the suffering many of us feel. In this chorus, listeners have a chance to step away from solitude and feel, for a moment, less alone. How many have asked themselves, “If Stromae suffers from depression, maybe I’m not the only one? Maybe I shouldn’t feel so bad?”
Florence Khoriaty
It’s an important message because, even after decades of work, depression is still too often seen as a sign of laziness or weakness. Yet nothing could be further from the truth (Stromae’s prolific career is shorthand for that). Research shows that depression is a mental health disorder whose causes involve biopsychosocial interactions with complex mechanisms — neurophysiological, genetic, psychological, and environmental — that factor into each individual’s unique situation.
In opening up about his experiences, Stromae is declaring that a mental health disorder is not a choice and not something that discriminates by socio-economic class, by education level, by the contents of one’s wallet, or by one’s success. There’s a side effect to these words, set to endlessly catchy music; namely, that it reaches people differently than a public service campaign. That’s the magic of the album. And he advances the cause in leaps and bounds without a commercial tinge. The songs and lyrics have nuances and textures as real as the vicissitudes of life in all its rich complexities.
The full range
As with “L’Enfer,” the album’s other tracks are forthright accounts of the state of our society. It brings to mind the words of the rap group N.W.A., who said, “Our raps are documentary. We don’t take sides.” In that sense, Stromae’s album also avoids simple polarities with an honest portrait that isn’t couched in toxic positivity or end-of-the-world pessimism. Nor does he seek to be a standard-bearer for a particular disease or social cause or claim to be The Defender of All Those Who Suffer. Still, his lyrics have teeth.
In “Déclaration,” he denounces the hypocrisy of those who pride themselves on being fashionable feminists, while true progress continues to elude society. Stromae’s sarcasm belies a benevolence that serves as a through-line on the album. You hear the compassion clearly on the track “Santé” (Health), a celebratory toast to the disregarded: pilots, nurses, long-haul truck drivers, flight attendants, fishers, and bakers — along with professional insomniacs and “those who do not have the heart for celebrations.”
Let’s celebrate those who don’t celebrate themselves. A toast to the heroes of the worst times. —
In “La Solassitude” (which combines loneliness and lassitude), he explores the ups and downs of romantic relationships and the with-or-without-you challenge of maintaining a quality couplehood. He also looks at real solitude — that inner emptiness that follows you like a shadow and is seemingly inescapable no matter the surroundings.
In expressing the maudlin dark sides next to life’s more luminous moments, Stromae avoids easy divisions of “good” and “bad.” Yet he offers a winking reference to black-and-white thinking in two songs artfully sequenced toward the album’s end: “Mauvaise journée” (Bad Day) and “Bonne journée” (Good Day). Back to back, they express wry and poignant lyrics where listeners will likely recognize themselves in one way or another. They do so because we all have our ups and downs, just like we all experience a multitude of states of mind and see our lives from different angles as our perspectives evolve and shift. As Stromae reminds us of this, his album has a uniting effect. It reaches out to those who may need to hear that they’re not the only ones suffering in this giant universe, where we’re all just trying to get by.
The North American leg of Stromae’s tour starts October 21 in Vancouver.
