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#GetLoud for Increased Mental Health Funding:
Read the Federal Election Case for Investment 
All That's Fall- Upcoming Events

Dear Community of Practice Members,


As we move through the Fall season, we'd like to bring your attention to several resources that are freely available to you and invite you to share resources you think others would find useful in the online community platform. Be sure to log into the community "playspace" in order to view the resources throughout the newsletter.

October marks a busy month with Mental Illness Awareness Week, World Mental Health Day, the federal election and upcoming webinars, as well as midterms (psst check out the webinar on Academic Accommodations). Please take time for your own mental health and share the resources with other campus members to help foster a culture of support.
Do you have a resource you would like to share?

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Post your resource in the online community platform.     
 
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Mental Illness Awareness Week
Mental Illness Awareness Week- Open your eyes to the reality of mental illness
Mental Illness Awareness Week is an annual campaign coordinated by the Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health, encouraging Canadians to open their eyes to the reality of mental illness.  

The Canadian Mental Health Association has a series of easy-to-read evidence-based fact sheets on a variety of topics related to mental health and substance use problems.  The HeretoHelp website is another great place to visit if you are looking for resources related to mental health, alcohol and other drugs, and more! 

Featured Resources
Myths About Mental Illness
Myths about Mental Illness

“Mental illnesses affect everyone in some way. We all likely know someone who has experienced a mental illness at some point. Yet there are still many hurtful attitudes around mental illnesses that fuel stigma and discrimination and make it harder to reach out for help. It’s time to look at the facts.” 
Mental Illnesses
Mental Illnesses

“What do you think of when you hear that someone is experiencing a mental illness? Some people feel concern, fear, or confusion. Some even avoid those who experience mental illnesses. But mental illnesses are just like any other illness: everyone deserves care, help, and support.” 
Visions Journal: Mind-Body Connections
Mind-Body Connections

“Our minds and our bodies have deep and complicated relationship. Perhaps you’ve notice the mood-boosting effects of physical activity, or discovered how strongly a physical health concern can impact the way you feel about yourself. While we can’t say that all mental health problems cause physical health problems (or vice versa), we do know that a change in one can affect the other."
Visions Journal: Treatment- What Works?

Visions Journal
Treatment: What Works?

“It seems like everyone has an opinion when it comes to treatments for mental health or substance use problems. To add to the confusion, it isn’t always obvious who is basing their opinions on real evidence and who is not. And while we often hear people talk about evidence-based treatments, it’s also clear that complementary and alternative medicine approaches are helpful for some."

World Mental Health Day
World Mental Health Day- Oct. 10th, 2015
October 10th, 2015 marks World Mental Health Day. This week, we encourage you to reflect on your own mental health and think of ways you can better support your own health and wellbeing, while fostering mentally healthy campus communities. Browse, download and add your own comments to the resources shared in the online community platform.

Featured Resources
Dignity in Mental Health Report
Dignity in Mental Health Report

The World Federation for Mental Health has released a report titled, “Dignity in Mental Health” for World Mental Health Day 2015. “With this year’s theme we aim to show the ways in which dignity can be provided in all aspects of mental health, ranging from care for our patients/consumers to the attitudes of the general public.”
Wellness Modules (11 Instructive Worksheets)
Wellness Modules (11 instructive worksheets)

“The Wellness Modules are a series of instructive worksheets on promoting good mental health and general well-being. Based on quality information from well-conducted research in these areas. Included are definitions of basic concepts, tips on how to manage mental health and well-being on a daily basis and links to other helpful resources.” There are 11 modules on topics such as mental health matters, stress and well-being, finding balance and more.
Wellness Module: Staying Mentally Healthy with Technology


Wellness Module:
Staying Mentally Healthy with Technology 

“Technology can be very helpful—in fact, it’s easy to feel like it’s the only way. However, technology can have a real impact on well-being. It’s important to find a good balance so you can enjoy all of the benefits while minimizing the harms.” 
Mindfulness Moment

Mindfulness is one practice that some people use to support their mental health that's gained attention in recent years. Mindfulness as defined by Jon Kabat-Zinn is, "paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally."

If mindfulness is of interest to you, you may want to check out the Mindfulness Summit, which is taking place throughout the month of October. This free online event gains you access to experts on the topics of mindfulness and meditation, in addition to providing resources such as interviews, presentations and practice sessions. Learn more here >>>  
Mindfulness: Youth Voices video
The Kelty Mental Health Resource Centre has a great video titled,
"Mindfulness: Youth Voices" that is intended to describe to youth and young adults what mindfulness is, explain some of the benefits and outline where to learn more about mindfulness.
  1. Take a couple of minutes to notice your breathing. Sense the flow of the breath, the rise and fall of your belly.
  2. Notice what you are doing as you are doing it and tune into your senses. When you are eating, notice the colour, texture and taste of the food.
  3. When you are walking, tune into how your weight shifts and the sensations in the bottom of your feet. Focus less on where you are headed.
  4. Don’t feel that you need to fill up all your time with doing. Take some time to simply be.
  5. When your mind wanders to thinking, gently bring it back to your breath.
  6. Recognize that thoughts are simply thoughts; you don’t need to believe them or react to them.
  7. Practice listening without making judgments.
  8. Notice where you tend to zone out (e.g., driving, emailing or texting, web surfing, feeding the dog, doing dishes, brushing teeth, etc.). Practice bringing more awareness to that activity.
  9. Spend time in nature.
  10. Notice how the mind likes to constantly judge. Don’t take it seriously. It’s not who you are.
Excerpt from "What's the Buzz about Mindfulness?"
Reprinted from "Wellness" issue of Visions Journal, 2013, 7 (4), pp. 26-28.

Featured Resources
Wellness Module: Mindfulness
Wellness Module: Mindfulness

“Mindfulness can help! Mindfulness is a tool that anyone can use at any time. It encourages us to slow down, accept things as they are, cope well with problems or difficulties, and simply appreciate what’s in our life right now.” HeretoHelp has a series of modules that incorporate helpful tips and worksheets, which are available on their website.
What's the Buzz About Mindfulness?
What's the Buzz about Mindfulness?

“You’ve probably noticed that the word ‘mindfulness’ is popping up everywhere. Even though mindfulness meditation has been around for millennia, the practice of mindfulness has been steadily gaining the attention of the medical and mental health community.” Read other articles on the topics of mental health and substance use on the HeretoHelp website.

#GETLOUD for Increased Mental Health Funding 


As the federal election fast approaches, we encourage you to email or mail your local candidates to get mental health on the federal election agenda. By telling them we need a Mental Health Transition and Innovation Fund, you will be helping to make a positive difference for all Canadians by encouraging an improvement to mental health care in our country.  
 
 
Case for Investment Report
View the Case for Investment to learn more about what the Canadian Mental Health Association is encouraging the government to consider.   


Use this document to help advocate for mental health funding in your community.  You may also find the statistics inside this document helpful in your own work.



"In Canada, 6.7 million people are living with a mental health problem or illness today. That’s three times more than people living with diabetes and almost five times more than those living with heart disease.

And did you know that if you have a severe mental health problem or illness you are likely to die, often from undiagnosed or untreated physical health issues, 25 years earlier than adults in the general population?"

Upcoming Webinars
Promising Practices for Building a Healthier Residence Environment
October 20th | 10am - 11:30am 
Register Here >>>

Academic Accommodation for PostSecondary Students with Mental Health Problems: Recommendations from an Ontario-wide Research Study 
October 28th | 10am - 11:30am 

Visit www.healthycampuses.ca
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