Mental Health Awareness Month

A student is planning a Mental Health Awareness Month at the school. She is bringing in a variety of speakers and workshop facilitators to teach about mental health and strategies for young people.

Update (June 15, 2017)

My name is Aurora Brown, I just finished a project on mental health. This project entailed me making February in my school, The Seven Oaks Met School’s Mental Health month. I had mental health related presentations and workshops on February 8th, 15th, and 22nd.

On February 8th Jane Burpee from Manitoba Schizophrenia Society presented to the whole school for 45 minutes speaking about her career, the seriousness of mental illness, the importance of mental health and how to promote it.

On February 15th Deedee Olinyk BScN, RPN spoke to the whole school about self-esteem and self-respect. Covering topics like standing up for themselves, looking to themselves for approval, and getting self-worth from internal not external sources.

February 22nd was set up more as a conference; where there were different session going on in different rooms at once. There were 5 different presenters and workshops.

• Taylor Demetrioff from the Canadian Mental Health Association
• Sage Schick running a workshop called “Other People Feel This Too”
• Big Daddy Tazz
• two yoga instructors, Krista Nicholson, and Kelly Cowan


Taylor Demetrioff - Canadian Mental Health Associations
The CMHA presented a workshop on anxiety and stress. This workshop spoke on the subject of anxiety and stress in a person’s life. The Youth Mental Health Promotion Worker explained the difference between “feeling nervous” and having an anxiety disorder while demonstrating that not all stress is negative. As well as noticing signs and symptoms of stress and anxiety, the group explored various coping strategies to better their mental health during stressful situations such as exam time at school.

Sage Schick - presented a workshop called “Other People Feel This Too”.
Other People Feel This Too was a presentation to educate students about suicidality, to provide resources for support, and to inspire youth to take action for themselves and their peers. This presentation was a combination of: Storytelling about the presenter's lived experience with suicidality and emotional distress as a teen; Education about warning signs, resources and appropriate steps for students to take for themselves and peers; Interactive group and individual exercises to help students map out their own resources, build rapport and diminish stigma about suicidality and emotional distress.

Krista Nicholson - Yoga 1
Krista holds a BA Honors Dance and degree in Politics. Krista traveled to Byron Bay Australia to take her yoga training in January 2012. Krista relishes sharing her love of yoga with all of its joys, challenges, benefits for the mind, body and soul!

Kelly Cowan - Mindfulness Yoga 2
Kelly has done her youth yoga training and then pursued further adult training. Her yoga is centered on mindfulness. Especially in looking at body awareness - posture and muscles and how they are linked to mental awareness and how it comes full circle.

Big Daddy Tazz
Often described as “one of the most talented comics in the business”, Big Daddy Tazz has been delighting crowds at fundraisers, corporate events, festivals and on television for more than a decade and a half. Known as the “Bi-Polar Buddha”, Tazz is equal parts comedian and motivational speaker, who likes to enlighten, educate and inspire. As a result, his one-man shows have drawn rave reviews and standing ovations from coast-to-coast.