For Bell Let’s Talk Day on Wednesday, mental health was the topic in mind for many Canadians.
The theme for this year was taking a moment for one’s mental health; whether it’s taking a moment to address your own wellbeing or reaching out to those around you, Let’s Talk Day encourages everyone to prioritize mental health.
Fanshawe College students shared their strategies on how they take care of their mental health.
“When I’m taking care of myself, it’s usually just taking time off, I take vacation from work, I don’t make music or anything, I do some schoolwork, and that’s it. Just don’t do anything,” said Xzavier, a Music Industry Arts student.
Another student, Conan, said that taking care of your mental health means taking time to yourself. “Spending time alone and taking time to process things, and you know, kind of disconnecting a bit and then when I’m ready, it’s always refreshing.” said Conan.
When it comes to being diagnosed with bipolar disorder, Tyler of the college’s Fashion Design program, said that communicating with teachers and therapists are crucial when experiencing ups and downs.
“As long as you’re transparent and dealing with mental health, balancing medication, therapy, and staying sober, really helps me a lot.” he said.
Bell Let’s Talk Day pop-up at Fanshawe College (credit: Lexi Saldana)
The college also hosted a pop-up where donuts, muffins, cookies, and toques were for sale and 100% of the proceeds made would go into the school’s on-campus mental health services.
To mark its 16th year, Canadians were encouraged to participate in different activities and immersive experiences made in communities across the country such as phone installations at CF Toronto Eaton Centre, dog therapy sessions with St. John Ambulance in Nova Scotia, and a performance by Canadian artist Jamie Fine at Bell Media Studios Toronto.
For more information on Bell Let’s Talk Day initiative, visit www.letstalk.bell.ca.
