There is a growing understanding of the interrelated relationship between both physical and mental health. Having poor mental health can often lead to negative physical health, and poor physical health can impact one's psychological well-being.
At “Bootcamps for Change”, we view poverty as a cause and consequence of ill-health. Our main areas of focus are mental illness and physical health, exercise and good mental health; the impact of unemployment on health; and the importance of resiliency, by creating positive habits for physical and mental health for at-risk youth. We facilitate in-shelter fitness and employment programs for youth experiencing homelessness: I was inspired to find this organization after fitness had greatly impacted my own physical, and therefore mental health. Shine the Light On has been kind enough to have supported us in the past, when we put on a mental health panel with members from NewView Collective.
Homeless youth are found to have increased future risk of diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, and musculoskeletal disorders; and lack of hygiene, stress around living conditions, and poor nutrition contribute to increased risk of respiratory infections, viruses, and diseases. Stressors associated with poverty and homelessness have been correlated with the onset of cardiovascular disease, chronic illnesses, and diabetes (Hwang et al., 2010; Marmot & Wilkinson, 2006; McEwan, 2004; Mikkonen & Raphael, 2010). Organizing accessible physical activity for at-risk youth on a consistent basis is essential for overall strength, mental well-being, and the prevention of illness and disease.
Physical health is intertwined with mental health, as those who experience less stress get sick less often, and in turn, are more productive at work and take less sick days to avoid financial difficulty. Youth experiencing poverty are more likely to be physically ill due to little physical exercise opportunities in shelters. This can then in turn become time away from work due to poor physical or mental health, thus continuing the poverty cycle.
Homelessness can result in social exclusion which then contributes to diminished quality social support, increased risk health behaviours and compromised physical and psychological health outcomes. Social exclusion is an inability to participate fully in the economic, cultural, social and political aspects of a society. Approximately 75.7% of homeless youth in Canada are unemployed (Without a Home, 2016) compared to 11% of the average Canadian youth population (Trading Economics, 2019). Research shows that there is a direct correlation between one’s social structure and their health (both physical and mental). Sociologists have long known that healthy human living is grounded in having meaningful emplacement within society.
The homeless and marginalized face barriers to improve their employment status, providing them with livelihood to improve their health. Bootcamps for Change promotes economic mobility to address this through our #SweatierForTheBetter Scholarship Program. We hire youth experiencing homelessness to teach their peers fitness classes, after we have supported them in education and mentorship.
Mental health issues strongly relate to broader issues regarding homelessness, as these problems may undermine one’s ability to obtain and/or maintain housing, income, and other necessary supports. In the other direction, health status can contribute to homelessness. For example, certain health conditions (e.g., mental health issues) may influence the onset of homelessness and worsen the homeless state.
Youth experiencing homelessness are more likely to experience mental health challenges including anxiety and depression. When experiencing these challenges, it is not only hard to explain gaps in employment but also feel motivated or confident in improving one’s financial situation. Exercise has been shown to improve one’s mental health and confidence significantly. When youth improve their confidence with our programs, they can gain resilience and self-confidence to seek out new skills to improve their livelihood.
Bootcamps for Change wants to alleviate the incidence of ill-health with accessible, inclusive fitness programs - allowing them to move more. Youth who live in poverty are at increased risk of falling behind on many health outcomes. All youth deserve the support, resources, and opportunities they need to reach their full potential.
In conclusion, through studies and research it is shown that mental and physical health are often interrelated and can have a profound influence on one another. This especially can occur in those who experience unemployment or poverty, as both experiences have been linked to poor mental health, and therefore physical health issues as well. This is why being resilient, encouraging good habits early on for mental and physical health are important to help adopt and maintain good health through the struggles youth may face, such as homelessness or poverty; a problem our organization is solving.
Written by: Katie Heggtveit
katie@bootcampsforchange.com
Throughout our lifetime, we lose many people – friends, colleagues, and family members. Sometimes we lose people naturally, such as moving to different schools and changing jobs. But sometimes we lose people because of a force completely out of our control. Those tend to affect us the most.
In early 2017, I lost a co-worker and friend to suicide. It took me completely by surprise; I was in deep shock for a long time. Although I wasn’t very close with him, I worked with him countless times and loved his individuality.
Personally, 2017 was a really bad year for my mental health. It wasn’t the worst year, but a lot of terrible things happened. Apart from my friend’s suicide, I also went through a breakup, a family member had to go to the hospital many times, and someone very close to me attempted suicide. Thankfully the attempt was not successful.
Before my friend took his own life, I had never experienced the death of anyone close to me before. This was my first time having to cope with grief. At first, all I felt was numb. I was shocked, confused, and heart broken. At that time, I felt like I had a good support system, but I did not want to talk to anyone about what I was feeling. I felt like nobody would understand. I was tired.
Eventually, I started feeling angry. I was angry at the world for taking away a soul so beautiful. Someone who never failed to smile at me. I was angry for feeling angry. I was tired.
After the anger subsided, the depression hit. I always use music as my escape, but there were certain songs that slid me deeper into my depression. Every time I heard “The Night We Met” by Lord Huron, I always thought about my friend and it never failed to make me cry. Just hearing the first few chords of the song was enough to trigger some tears. I was tired. It took me three years to able to listen to the entire song without tearing up.
Growing up, nobody teaches you how to cope with grief. Nobody warns you how slow and painful the process is. But as cliché as it sounds, time really does help heal the wounds. What helped me get through the darker days were my support system, music, and giving myself the time to feel what I needed to feel.
On the days I found difficult to be positive and to control the emotions I was feeling, I tended to shut myself off from the rest of the world. I didn’t want to drag anybody else into my darkness. But because I was going to school full-time, I was forced to interact with countless people sometimes. I found that on those days, I actually felt better. And it wasn’t because I was forced to talk about how I was feeling. All it took was one genuine interaction/conversation with somebody to help me reset my mind.
So, over time, I started confiding in my friends about how I was feeling. I realized I didn’t need advice – I just needed someone to listen. I slowly learned to accept all the emotions I was feeling. Some days I would feel invincible. Some days the littlest things would make me cry. Some days I would wake up and feel angry at the world. I had a good mix of good, bad, and ugly days.
The biggest lesson I learned through my process of grief, was to allow myself to feel what I needed to feel. You can’t pretend that everything is okay if you wake up feeling like the world is about to end. If you need to get a good cry in, do it. If you need to laugh and have fun, even though you might feel like it’s not fair to, do it. Listen to your body and your mind. Allow yourself to stay in the present. Even when times feel super dark and you don’t see a light at the end of the tunnel, we all reach the end of the tunnel eventually. It might take us a while to get there, but things really do get better.
If I had to take something positive out of such a heartbreaking situation, it would be my newfound appreciation for life. I had once struggled with my own mental health. When I was younger, I thought I was ready to give it all up. Over the years, I have learned healthy coping mechanisms that work for me. I am learning to ask for help when I need it. I take full breaths. I consciously listen for birds chirping, wind rustling through the leaves in the trees, and for the rain hitting my window. I love with my full heart, laugh until my stomach aches, and cry until all my sorrow is released.
Life is hard and it will throw you curveballs when you least expect it. Sometimes, you will feel such immense heartache in your life. But other times, you might feel like you’re on top of the world. Always allow yourself to feel what you need to feel. Accept what is happening, take a few deep breaths, and find the resources to help you get through any hurdles. Take all the time you need. There is no timeframe of healing, but there are things you can do and people you can talk to, to make the process easier.
Written by: Lannie Kheng
]]>Allow this to be a gentle reminder that you are allowed to set aside time to acknowledge your own story. The past, the present and the desired future. The good, the bad, and the ugly. The ups, the downs, and the curveballs. It is important to recall the struggles you have faced, and the hurtles you have overcome thus far. Take a moment right now to feel proud of yourself, because you deserve it.
It is empowering to not only remember your story, but to fully own it. By owning your story, you are giving yourself permission to be proud of each chapter that has passed. By being proud of your past chapters, you are opening up space for new and meaningful ones to be written. Find peace in the fact that the road ahead is still being paved, and you have the power to alter your course as you wish, at any time.
3 ways to shine a light on your own story:
If you choose to shine a light on your own story, comment below or DM us on Instagram to let us know how it went! Your story is important, and we hope we can help you remember that.
Written by: Shannon Grant
]]>ELI BROWN IS THE FOUNDER OF SHINE THE LIGHT ON. THIS IS HIS STORY.
Shine The Light On (STLO) from Shine The Light On (STLO) on Vimeo.
From the outside, my life looked perfect. I was in college, playing tennis in the NCAA, surrounded by friends, coaches, and peers. I’d checked all the right boxes and yet I was struggling with depression and anxiety. I knew something was wrong, but I stayed silent.
For years I struggled alone. I was sure that no one would understand. I lived in a perpetual state of fear; fear of judgment, fear of alienation and fear that I was permanently damaged. I thought asking for help would make me seem weak, but it was only through reaching out that I began to recover. My struggles were a part of me, but they didn’t defy me. I realized that recovery was possible and that through a willingness to be vulnerable there was a way through.
Today, I feel like I’ve been given a second chance. I’m living life in a way I never thought possible. Having come through the other side I feel compelled to carry the message forward. I want to end the shame and stigma that causes people to suffer in silence. It’s my hope that through advocacy, education, and outreach we can start a conversation, create a platform and ultimately shine a light on mental health.
Eli Brown
Toronto 2020
Personally, I had no idea what I was going through when it started within me. And that’s when reality hit me: you never really know what someone is going through, by simply looking at them or speaking to them. Subliminal messages lie both above and beneath the surface. As humans, we’ve become masters of disguising. It took me awhile to finally feel free within this thing that they call an “invisible illness or dis-ease”.
A traumatic experience of sudden illness at age 30 struck me, making it hard to believe that my armored soul was under siege. My life turned upside down, relationship lost, 2 years of sick leave. Moving back in in with my parents (temporary loss of independence, baby). Somehow, someway I made it to the top, to the shore where I was finally able to breathe. I fought against the voices who once told me I could take dips in frigid lakes, walk on water like JC. Or be like a bird; soar from high heights and fly free. These particular incidents I’ve never shared; they lay hidden within me.
All I had and have to do is breathe and remember that what’s going on inside of me may be difficult to comprehend or see, but it doesn’t define me.
I am strength just as much as I am my vulnerabilities. I am love just as much as I am flawed. My soul is a stir fry of confidence and insecurities. Depression is the effect but my happiness will always take the lead. Next time you look at me or any of we, listen closely as our hearts speak. One day we’ll crack the code to this mental “invisibility”.
]]>There was concern expressed about my mental health and so a series of social workers began to visit me, with little to no introduction as to why, or what their role was. I had never met a social worker before this, nor had any insight as to what they did as a profession being from a very small town in BC.
I did not connect with the first two of them as they asked me about my mood, my feelings, and even my connection to god. I was confused by what they wanted as I was being seen by multiple doctors a day for my injuries and assumed this was just another part of the process.
Finally, a third social worker visited me and the first thing he said was, ‘wow you’re a big guy, you must play football?’ I answered that I played rugby as there was not a football program where I grew up. From there he spoke about working with the Simon Fraser University varsity rugby and football programs with regard to concussions and the connection was easy and flowed well from there. He would go on to share with me that the nursing staff saw me cry and was concerned about low mood and potential suicidality. I shared with him that I was just frustrated that it seemed I was not getting better and only having more complications. He understood and said that he was there if I wished to talk, but that there was no reason for him to see me unless I wished to. I was in the hospital for 3 weeks total and off school for another 3.
From there, I became more interested in mental health, taking psychology courses as electives in my undergrad and then going on to work in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside doing street outreach work with homeless populations that were experiencing high levels of addiction and mental health issues.
I knew then that I wished to do more and so I went back to school to achieve my Masters in Social Work from the University of Calgary. I completed practica working in a general counselling agency as well as working with the health authority, predominantly seeing women who were experiencing breast and ovarian cancer.
My work with these women would be foundational to my growth as a therapist. I quickly came to understand that even though I did not have breasts or ovaries, nor a cancer diagnosis, that I could still empathize and connect with my clients on an emotional level. I knew what it was like to experience, fear, anxiety, shame, etc.
My first job post graduation was working with male victims of domestic abuse, coordinating a provincially funded program in Calgary. This opportunity allowed me to really find my calling; working with men and their mental health. During my three years in this program, I was recognized with 2 different awards and spoke at numerous conferences in Canada and even in the US.
I then went on to work for Alberta Health Services as a mental health therapist where I worked with individuals ranging in age from 8 to 80 and presenting with mental health concerns from feeling anxious to people hearing voices urging them to harm others. This was my true next step of education and solidified my feeling that I was in the right career.
I arrived in Toronto in November of 2017 and opened my own practice in February or 2018. Since then, I have seen my practice thrive and the most exciting part is that the majority of my caseload is male. It is so encouraging to see men reaching out to talk about their struggles and experiences in hopes to create a better life for themselves and to address their mental health in a positive way.
I also am part of a monthly event put on by a nonprofit named Next Gen Men where individuals gather to create brave space and for men to have conversations that they may not traditionally be having. We continue to have great attendees, presenters, and engaging discussions that leave everyone feeling exhilarated and excited to share with others in their lives. We are very lucky to have people of all genders and orientations attend these events, speaking to the safety of the space that we have been able to create.
I have been personally impacted by mental health in my own experiences of stress and distress at points in my life, as well as loved ones experiencing their own mental health challenges. My single biggest learning in this field has been that mental health struggles and experiencing distress is far less based on genetic makeup and significantly impacted by our personal environment. When someone is faced with an unhealthy or unsupportive environment in their lives, it can take a tremendous toll on their mental wellness and can lead to increased risk of developing a mental illness or disorder if not addressed. While this is not always true, many that I have met/worked with that have had mental health struggles have also had some levels of tumultuous ness/distress in their living environment.
Family members and close friends of mine have had their own battles with their mental wellness and I have experienced times in my own life of low mood or increased anxiousness. Often these have been as a result of stressors in my life and I have also been lucky enough to have a strong support network and learning to identify when I need to reach out or when a change would be necessary or helpful.
I am now lucky enough to have people seek me out to be a part of their journey toward becoming mentally healthy and enjoying mental wellness, however that looks for them. It is both humbling and exciting to be a part of this work and to see the positive outcomes and growth of my clients as they create the life/relationships that they desire.
Mental health and wellness is part of a continuum and it can shift from one day to the next. However, learning what your own needs are and developing the skills to install them into your life and not feel guilty about that, is truly at the root of therapy. Because these are skills, it means that we can all learn them and change the way we are living. I encourage everyone to try seeing a therapist once in their life, if only to have an understanding of the process and to be able to normalize mental health therapy and mental illness for others. Mental health is health and we all deserve to be healthy.
]]>I AM POWER.
WE EMPOWER.
]]>I always kept a competitive athletic lifestyle. I pursued soccer for 13 years in hopes of getting a free education. Due to the timing of my jaw surgery, that didn't happen. This was a rough time for me and so I started cutting because I didn't have the support I needed. When I began university, it wasn't until my second year that I started to notice I was developing a lot of bad habits. I was partying way too much and spent 5-6 days a week either working in the club or going out to the club with friends. I was drinking way too much, barely sleeping, and eating one meal or so a day when I had time. I was working myself into the ground day in day out for about 2 years before my life took a turn. My lifestyle was out of control, I was out of control and I had three near death car accidents in one year. I remember in one instance I worked five shifts back to back in three days with no sleep at all.
I wanted to get away from all the bad influences in my life, I felt like everyone else was dictating my path and I had no control. The nightclub environment was toxic, and a lot of my friends were industry people who didn't share the same desires as me. There was only one thing keeping me going at this point and that was to save for my escape to Texas. I had met a girl online and was head over heels for her and wanted a change of scenery anyway. So after 6 months of talking back and forth I packed my stuff and moved to Texas to figure out my new life with her.
Three months after my transition to Texas, I was sitting in my new girlfriend’s sister's living room in LA, when I realized I was still so unhappy. I mean, here I was locked up in the house all day, looking for the next opportunity to make a quick dollar. I spent so much of my time surfing the internet looking for modelling gigs, acting gigs, serving gigs, bar tending gigs, pretty much anything to stay afloat. I hadn’t even realized that two months had gone by, and I had barely left the house. Ironically enough, the whole purpose of being in LA was to get away, kick start a new lifestyle, and leave all the garbage behind. I felt my life was a roller coaster prior to moving out to LA, so it seemed like exactly the thing I needed at the time. I was 22 years old with no real obligations other than a phone bill, car insurance and student debts, I figured why not take off for a bit. Who turns down palm trees and a foreign love affair? But none of it solved anything. I was stuck in my thoughts and the real underlying issues.
Then it hit me, I had gone so far off track and was addicted to escaping my pain through any form of instant gratification. It was like my impulse control was non-existent. When I came to realize I was actually coping with BPD, Bipolar Disorder and addiction my journey towards recovery began. My addiction was to all things that brought me joy and numbed the realities I didn't want to face, had to be addressed. I thought the move was going to be everything I wanted and needed, instead I was at the lowest low I had ever been through. This also wasn’t the first time my life was in shambles. I really started to reflect on my lifestyle, my choices and where I had gone wrong. I had always had ups and downs, and struggled with my overall happiness. However, this was the first time I took a look in the mirror, and felt like I was so far from who I used to be. My journey to recovery through therapy, nutrition and fitness has been long but rewarding. My diagnoses helped me to navigate all of the cognitive and behavioural issues I was facing. However, present day I continue to work on deconstructing 24 years of bad habits, pain and trauma.
]]>Everybody knows Brazil for its stunning beaches and perfect bodies wearing tiny bikinis. Since my childhood I struggled with eating disorders,always overweight, by 12 I started taking amphetamines, by 15 I had my first anorexia crisis, but I was happy because I lost weight...
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The anxiety and depression hit me very hard all of a sudden, but part of me always very unhappy with where I was in life. I’ve chased money, titles, and business my entire life and when I achieved the so-called dream, it felt like it was all for nothing. In December 2017, this is when it hit its highest moment. It was New Year's Eve at the restaurant which is one of the busiest nights of the year, I started having panic attacks. I was throwing up from the anxiety and I couldn’t sleep because of the depression. After that, I stopped going to the restaurant, lost all motivation to do anything. It started getting better when I started to take Ativan as needed and Cipralex. The Cipralex didn’t help, it only made me more anxious but the Ativan was what calmed me and I was hooked to the feeling I had when I took it.
But clearly, it wasn’t a long term solution. I tried four other medications until I found one that worked for me. Also, I started going to meditation sessions, therapy, and working on myself. Over the last year, or so is when I started to see improvements to my mental health. I became more resilient. It’s still something everyone struggles with, not just myself. My situation isn’t unique by any means because everyone is going through something in life. But through my journey with mental health, I’ve found purpose and meaning behind everything I do. I’ve founded a small project called The Hungry Mind through this journey.