Part One I used to think I was self-aware. I used to think I had a pretty good grasp on who I was until I set out on a journey to manage my emotional and mental health and quickly discovered that not only was I not self-aware, I didn’t completely understand what self-awareness meant. A…
“We can only experience the true beauty of vulnerability when we’re courageous enough to crack open the fractures in our mask and allow the light to shine in.” I wrote these words several years ago as a reminder to stay open. To embrace vulnerability when I struggled to share the truth for what would eventually…
“I can’t write a book!” was my first reaction when my sister suggested I write one. “Why not?” she asked. I could already sense a million reservations building up inside me (okay, maybe not a million but at least three to start with.) The biggest one—the one that kept coming up repeatedly—was what I’d imagine…
An estimated 1.2 million Canadian children and youth are affected by mental illness yet only 20% of those children will receive treatment according to the Mental Health Commission of Canada. These numbers should alarm us. These numbers should have us asking what can we do to ensure our children are mentally and emotionally healthy? Our children’s…
Yesterday, I had the pleasure of chatting with Kevin Olenick on his podcast Agree or Disagree We discussed mental health, anxiety, bullying, anxiety, and of course my book, Taming Crazy – Confessions and Lessons. We also discussed vulnerability. In particular, how being brave and courageous enough to be vulnerable can give you permission to release the…
The dark silky water almost feels comforting as you float in the shallows. You allow yourself to relax for just a moment but soon a sense of uneasiness starts to surround you. No one else can see it or feel it, but you know it’s there, lurking just beneath the surface. At that moment,…
Have you received or bought a new journal, planner or notebook and haven’t cracked it open yet? Or perhaps you started out strong, writing every day but have already abandoned it. You’re not alone. I used to love opening a new journal, notebook or planner. It always felt like a new beginning. It…
Anxiety can be isolating. It fills your head with self-doubt and has you believing you just don’t measure up. It can make you feel like you’re the only one feeling the way you do, and that no one else can possibly understand. How could they? They’re normal and you…well you, are not! Normal people…