John Elder Robison dealt with Asperger’s Syndrome (AS) for 50 years, which is a milder form of the autism spectrum disorder characterized by significant difficulties in nonverbal communication and social skills. He managed to have a life established; he had a job, was married, and had a son. However, he still wasn’t satisfied and wished […]
For those of you starting your first year at UBC, welcome! For those coming back for another year, welcome back! To kick off this school year, I thought a good article to start off with would be to talk about some ways to take care of your general mental health and wellbeing. Most of these […]
Categories
The Picture of Balance
What do you think of when you think of balance? Do you picture a scale with two items on each side? Maybe the yin and yan symbol? Two kids on a see-saw? Or maybe a person trying to walk on a balance beam? I think of my agenda, filled with multicoloured post-it notes and ink-bleeding […]
Categories
The Stages of Loss and Grief
Loss and grief is something that everyone experiences. Loss, grief and mourning are all universal and are experienced by people all around the world. Having someone important leaving us is a devastating experience. According to Kübler-Ross there are 5 stages of normal grief that is experienced. Please note that the stages do not have to […]
Categories
The ABCs to Dealing with Worry
Recently I’m been thinking about worry. It is something that many people deal with, or for some like myself, struggle with. Worry is an inescapable feeling throughout our lives. It comes and goes whenever it desires, but I’ve learned that there is always a root to this feeling. We worry about the future, as it […]
Feeling stressed? A good way to reduce stress and depressive symptoms is to keep a journal or diary. According to Krisha McCoy, people who write in a diary or notebook show both physical and emotional benefits and potentially increases their longevity. As a diary writer myself, I feel like it allows me to express my […]
Categories
Reading as a prescription
It is that time of the year we were all waiting for to get a rest from school and enjoy some free time –sometimes too much. I find that books are our best filler for occupying these long summer days; they can transport us away from tedium and give company when people cannot. Reading may […]
Categories
A Colourful Hello
Hello, it’s me, Charlotte, Seeing that this is my first piece with MHAC, I wanted to start off with saying hello, you! Thank you for taking the time to read this, whoever you are. You’re really lovely for doing so. I think with many great beginnings, seeing that this will be a year long journey […]
Categories
What are Eating Disorders?
An increasing number of studies have shown that eating disorders are widespread and there has been dramatic increase in Western countries from 1960-1995 (Hoek, 2002; Russell, 2009; Stieiger, Bruce & Israel, 2013). What are eating disorders? Some common eating disorders include bulimia nervosa, and anorexia nervosa. Bulimia nervosa is when an individual experiences out-of-control eating […]
Categories
Erasable labels
When someone tells you, “I love you,” and then you feel, “Oh, I must be worthy after all,” that’s an illusion. That’s not true. Or someone says, “I hate you,” and you think, “Oh, God, I knew it; I’m not very worthy,” that’s not true either. Neither one of these thought hold any intrinsic reality. […]