Lyne, our Health & Wellness Specialist, is a strong advocate for mental health awareness both at home and at work. Lyne is the past Board Chair for the Healthy Minds Cooperative, was the Halifax Police’s volunteer of the year in 2021 for her work with the Victim Services Unit, and has given speeches on mental health for organizations across Nova Scotia and Canada. She has been previously nominated as one of Canada’s Top 150 Difference Makers for her efforts in promoting mental health. As a strong community partner for mental health awareness, we are proud to have Lyne on our team. We thank her for sharing her perspective and this important message on Bell Let’s Talk day.
This year, Bell Let’s Talk Day is January 26th.
While this day gives us pause to reflect, safeguarding our mental health is something that we need to do 365 days a year. The fact of the matter is that we often hear stats of how one in five Canadians is living with mental illness, but in reality, five out of five of us have varying degrees of mental health.
Life events such as illness, relationship breakdown, family stress, living with systemic racism, job changes and a global pandemic can all impact our mental health. Life can sometimes feel like a race; we know there is a start and the finish, it’s tough but manageable, but, sometimes it feels more like we are running a marathon race with no end in sight. Running a marathon every single day is not sustainable. The life choices that we make, our perspective on how we see things, and the work that we do with intention to build resilience can help us better navigate through the many things that are thrown at us in life.
Being a resilient person doesn’t mean that life is a breeze with no problems. It means that you paddle with the current instead of against the current. You focus on the things that you have the ability to control and less on the stuff you don’t. It is sometimes also about looking at things from all perspectives, not just your own. It’s also about reframing how you see and do things in order to influence your best possible outcome.
How we speak to each other can impact our mental health. The tone we use, the words we say as well as the delivery method can have an impact on us. The words that are *not* said can also impact our mental health. Civility and respect are an important part of ensuring good mental health. There is power in our words.
We are made up of many parts. Our total health is multi-faceted. We need to consider our mental/emotional health, our physical health, our occupational health, our social/community connections, our financial health, and our nutritional health. These are all elements of our health and they are a package deal. This year when we talk about mental health, let’s consider all elements of our total health. By reinforcing our health in these areas, it by default, improves our mental health. Not everyone starts at the same place or has the same advantages, but we can all work on our health at our own pace.
If you are looking for support to help build your total health, please consider exploring the resources below.
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