Suicide hotlines are set up to do one thing, and one thing only: to get people through the moment. To provide them with someone to talk to when nobody else is available, until the moment of crisis has passed. That's it.
Tag: depression
Sophie Grégoire Trudeau needs to stop talking about mental health
Sophie Grégoire Trudeau's approach to mental health is completely individualist, over-simplistic and useless for most of us who struggle with anxiety, depression, and trauma. It's also not new.
Your pro gun control rhetoric is dangerous for people like me
Mental illness has become a scapegoat for systemic violence, and I'm scared for my friends.
Why I don’t believe in “self care” (and how to make it obsolete)
Someone asked me recently what my favourite self care strategies are. It seemed like a reasonable question until I realized that I had no idea what the answer is. I drew a complete blank. Which is weird, because I'm a mental health activist and I spend a lot of time thinking about how to take care … Continue reading Why I don’t believe in “self care” (and how to make it obsolete)
Five major barriers to basic mental health care
Trigger warning: the following includes discussion of health care professionals, depression, anxiety and mood disorders in general. It's June of the year I turned 23. I have just moved across the country, from Ottawa to Vancouver, and into my mother's house, because I am too sick to work and can't afford to pay my rent. The … Continue reading Five major barriers to basic mental health care
We need an anti-oppressive analysis of depression
After my last blog post was published, someone pointed out that depression is not usually included in the popular definition of "neurodivergence". The term is often used by people with autism to explain the fact that they are not sick or in need of a cure - that their brains simply work differently. It is … Continue reading We need an anti-oppressive analysis of depression
How to make your social movement more inclusive of neurodiversity
Some friends and I have been talking lately about the ways that people with learning disabilities, developmental disabilities and mental health issues have become excluded from the social justice organizations that we have been a part of. Even in grassroots collectives and unions that strive to be inclusive and where people know how to talk about … Continue reading How to make your social movement more inclusive of neurodiversity
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