00:00:00
Man: No, no!
00:00:01
Why don't we talk more
about mental health
00:00:04
in the African-American
community?
00:00:05
Man:
Sign him off!
00:00:07
♪ [light]
00:00:08
Mental health.
It's a term that I'm sure
00:00:10
you've heard being used
at school or on social media.
00:00:13
You know that it's important
and that it's something
00:00:15
people are trying
to raise awareness about,
00:00:18
but have you ever stopped
to think about
00:00:19
what it really means?
Let's dig into it.
00:00:22
This is KN Explains,
mental health.
00:00:25
[swoosh]
00:00:26
Everyone has mental health,
but what does that really mean?
00:00:31
What's the difference
between feeling sad
00:00:33
and being depressed.
Feeling nervous
00:00:36
versus having
an anxiety disorder?
00:00:38
And what can you do to help?
00:00:40
[pop, swoosh]
00:00:42
To better understand this topic,
I turned to a few experts.
00:00:45
Hi, my name's Jeremy Parkin
and I'm a wellness
00:00:49
support worker with
the Yukon First Nations
00:00:51
Education Directorate.
00:00:53
Hey, I'm Jennifer Khoury.
00:00:54
I'm a psychologist
here in Halifax.
00:00:57
My name is Simone Saunders,
and I'm a licensed therapist
00:01:00
in Calgary, Alberta.
00:01:01
So what is mental health?
00:01:04
Well, according
to our experts,
00:01:06
it is a term used
to describe our social
00:01:08
and emotional well-being.
00:01:10
Mental health is just
as important as physical health
00:01:13
and needs to be taken care of
just the same.
00:01:16
It is affected by many factors,
00:01:17
including your genetics,
your physical health,
00:01:20
your life
experiences and more.
00:01:22
We all have stress
and we all have
00:01:26
mental health needs.
00:01:27
To take care
of our mental health.
00:01:28
We have to balance
out the stress.
00:01:31
If we think of us all
having a stress bucket,
00:01:33
it gets filled up
with different stressors.
00:01:36
Schoolwork,
conflict with friends,
00:01:38
family, all different
things fill up our bucket,
00:01:41
but if it gets to full,
00:01:43
it can lead to us
feeling overwhelmed,
00:01:45
burnt out, or worse.
00:01:47
So to take care
of our mental health,
00:01:49
we need to be able to relieve
some of those stressors.
00:01:52
You can do that by getting
regular sleep, eating well,
00:01:55
socializing with friends
and family, going outside
00:01:58
and getting physical activity.
00:02:01
Anything that
helps us feel good.
00:02:03
Imagine each time
you relieve your stress,
00:02:06
a small hole
is made in the bucket,
00:02:08
off loading the weight
of all those stressors,
00:02:10
Keeping it all in balance
is key to mental wellness.
00:02:15
Mental wellness is a lifelong
process and is different
00:02:18
for everyone.
00:02:19
It doesn't mean
always being happy,
00:02:22
but rather that you're able
to manage well in your
00:02:24
day to day life.
00:02:25
Mental wellness is a spectrum
that goes up and down
00:02:29
throughout our lives.
00:02:30
There may be another term
you're hearing, mental illness.
00:02:34
Mental illness
is one part of mental health.
00:02:37
According to a survey from 2012,
00:02:39
one in three Canadians will be
affected by a mental illness
00:02:42
in their lifetime.
00:02:44
A mental illness
is a diagnosis,
00:02:46
which may be determined
by a doctor based on symptoms
00:02:49
and how they
affect a person's life.
00:02:51
Mental illness is not the same
as feeling distressed
00:02:54
because of normal reactions
to difficult situations,
00:02:56
like losing a loved one,
00:02:58
or big changes like
moving to a new school.
00:03:01
Everyone has feelings that
can feel negative at times.
00:03:04
Like feeling sad or anxious,
but not everyone
00:03:08
has a mental illness.
00:03:09
So mental illness
involves mental health problems
00:03:13
that are really linked
to high levels of distress
00:03:15
and or problems
functioning in daily life.
00:03:22
Ainara:
Sadness, for example,
00:03:23
is not a mental illness,
00:03:25
but if that sadness is paired
with other symptoms
00:03:27
like tiredness, irritability,
a lack of enjoyment
00:03:30
of things you used to enjoy,
00:03:32
then that could be depression.
00:03:34
Depression is a mental illness.
00:03:37
Another common mental
health concern is anxiety.
00:03:40
Everyone can feel stressed
or anxious at times,
00:03:44
but not everyone
has an anxiety disorder.
00:03:46
Why are you making me so
self-conscious right now?
00:03:48
Because I have to.
00:03:50
-Why?
-Because I am anxiety.
00:03:52
People who are mentally ill
can seek treatment,
00:03:55
that can be in the form of
medicines, like antidepressants,
00:03:58
but that can also be
in the form of therapy.
00:04:00
A combination of both drugs
00:04:02
and therapy
is often recommended.
00:04:03
Some mental illnesses
may only last for a certain
00:04:06
period of time,
but many are lifelong
00:04:09
health conditions.
00:04:10
People who are mentally ill
can live happy
00:04:12
and productive lives,
but may just need
00:04:15
some extra support, like anyone
living with a chronic illness.
00:04:18
It can be really difficult
to talk about mental health
00:04:21
and mental illness.
00:04:22
Sometimes that can be because
of something called stigma.
00:04:25
Stigmas are negative
stereotypes.
00:04:28
Stigmas can lead
to discrimination and they
00:04:30
can prevent people from seeking
the help that they need.
00:04:33
One way we stigmatize
mental illness
00:04:35
is with our language,
00:04:36
for example, calling people
crazy or psycho
00:04:39
is stigmatizing language.
00:04:41
Even saying things like,
00:04:42
"I am OCD"
can add to stigma.
00:04:45
Yeah, I actually have OCD.
00:04:47
Oh my god, girl, no, like same.
I'm so OCD, ah.
00:04:51
No, I actually,
I have--
00:04:53
OCD: Obsessive Compulsive
Disorder is a real diagnosis
00:04:56
and making light of it can be
harmful to those
00:04:59
who are actually living with it.
00:05:00
Some stigma comes
from the fact that
00:05:03
you can't see a mental
illness the same way you might
00:05:05
be able to see a
physical illness or disability.
00:05:08
That's why they're often called
invisible disabilities.
00:05:11
This can make people hesitant
to believe that someone
00:05:14
is struggling
and may even accuse them
00:05:16
of being overdramatic.
00:05:18
Talking about emotions
can also be stigmatized.
00:05:21
Sometimes society
and expectations make
00:05:24
you feel like you need
to appear strong
00:05:26
and mental illness can
be seen as weakness.
00:05:28
That is a huge stigma.
00:05:31
I think we just need to make
sure that people are--
00:05:33
know that it's okay
to not be okay is,
00:05:37
I think, the biggest stigma,
you know.
00:05:39
Some communities may be
at higher risk of dealing
00:05:42
with mental health difficulties
and mental illness.
00:05:45
That can be because
of a number of factors,
00:05:47
like having less money,
00:05:48
experiencing barriers
because of race
00:05:51
and living in an area
with less resources.
00:05:54
So what are some strategies
for taking care
00:05:56
of mental health
in all communities?
00:05:59
Well, first off is education.
00:06:01
Advocates say that everyone
should know more
00:06:04
about mental health, mental
wellness and mental illness.
00:06:07
That includes breaking down
dangerous stigmas
00:06:09
and also spreading
good information about
00:06:12
where to get help
when you need it.
00:06:13
For kids, getting help
with mental health concerns
00:06:16
can mean relying
on adults in our lives,
00:06:19
but sometimes those adults
lack education too.
00:06:22
Simone Saunders says that kids
can bring home resources
00:06:25
from school or share
what they find online
00:06:28
and start a conversation
with their parents.
00:06:30
And so when the older
people in your life
00:06:32
kind of have the foundation
of information,
00:06:35
it's like, okay,
this is what mental health is,
00:06:37
then it can be easier to start
talking about your own
00:06:40
mental health and your
own experiences.
00:06:42
A second strategy is access.
00:06:44
People need to be able
to access programs
00:06:47
and treatments
for mental health concerns.
00:06:49
Health care professionals
and mental health advocates
00:06:52
have been raising alarm bells
about the length of wait lists
00:06:55
for youth health care.
00:06:56
For example, a report from 2020
said that kids in Ontario
00:06:59
are waiting an average
of 67 days for counselling
00:07:02
and therapy and 92 days
for intensive treatment.
00:07:05
These sorts of waitlists
are common across Canada
00:07:08
and is a big reason why
advocates are asking governments
00:07:11
to provide more resources
to support mental health care.
00:07:14
A part of access is also
providing culturally
00:07:17
appropriate and community
based approaches.
00:07:19
I think it's really important
for everyone to feel like
00:07:22
they have a safe space
to express themselves
00:07:26
and a safe space to,
you know, be who they are.
00:07:30
As individuals,
we can help each other out.
00:07:33
That can mean being supportive
when people reach out for help
00:07:36
and it means treating people
with mental illnesses
00:07:39
with care and kindness.
00:07:41
It also means treating our own
mental health and wellness
00:07:43
with care and kindness.
00:07:44
♪ [chimes]
00:07:46
If you're in need of support,
you can talk
00:07:49
to a trusted Adult,
a school counsellor,
00:07:51
a health practitioner,
or you can use services
00:07:54
like Kids Help Phone.
00:07:56
Mental health is a big deal,
00:07:58
but it's not as scary
a topic as I thought.
00:08:01
What are some ways
that you take care
00:08:03
of your mental health?
00:08:04
For me, I like to write, read,
and try to fun new things.
00:08:07
Well, that's it for KN Explains.
00:08:10
For CBC Kids News,
I'm Ainara Alleyne.
00:08:15
To make this video,
I turned to expert interviews
00:08:18
and research.
Thanks to Jeremy Parkin,
00:08:21
Simone Saunders
and Jennifer Khoury,
00:08:23
who all appeared in the video.
00:08:24
Additional help came
from Stacey Gawrylash,
00:08:27
some sources of research
were CBC News ,
00:08:30
Statistics Canada
00:08:31
and the Canadian
Mental Health Association.
00:08:34
[hoots]
00:08:35
♪ ♪
