Bookshelf

I’ve often thought about sharing my favourite books and podcasts. I had a grand plan to make a special tab on my website for resources and links. And I would still love to do that sometime. However, life is really busy- not just for me but for most people. Sometimes it is important to move ahead and just “do the thing” rather than focusing on the exact vision in your mind. So for now, here is a list of books I frequently recommend to clients, friends and family looking for information, support, or a fun read. I had ideas of ranking them… keeping it to 5 books in each category… or many other ways of organizing but here it is off the top of my head. There are also so many other books I have read and enjoyed! And these are in no particular order. You may also find these on other folks “real” book lists.

Personal Growth & Development:

Anything by Brene Brown- in particular- The Gifts of Imperfection and Braving the Wilderness. She also has two amazing podcasts and multiple other books and resources.

Emotional Agility by Susan David

Burnout the Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle by Emily & Amelia Nagoski

The Body is Not An Apology by Sonya Renee Taylor

Becoming Safely Embodied by Deidre Fey

No Bad Parts by Richard Schwartz

The Biggest Bluff by Maria Konnikova

Memoire

Educated by Tara Westover

Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

This Red Line Goes Straight to Your Heart by Madhur Anand

Untamed by Glennon Doyle

Broken Horses by Brandi Carlile

Relationships

Mating in Captivity by Esther Perel

The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work by John Gottman

Come As You Are by Emily Nagoski

Fiction

Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng

Chief Inspector Gamache Series of Novels by Louise Penny (Still Life is book 1)

The Alice Network by Kate Quinn

City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert

Learning in chaos

So I am really excited that I was able to be part of a cool project some interdisciplinary colleagues are putting together- https://themindbodysummit.web.virtualsummits.com/ It is going to be available as an online virtual summit on June 10 2021. That is in less than 2 weeks!!! This has project has been in the works for months I know that some many people have poured love and passion, knowledge and care into creating this opportunity. I really hope that my friends, family, colleagues, clients, and any people reading this can jump on HERE and register to check it out. Because it’s going to be awesome! And it’s free. And I really wanted to share more about this in the past few weeks. But the chaos of life right now (that I’m sure each of you are aware of in your own personal flavour.)

I am also here to admit that I am so lost in the Instagram and social media marketing world. And my goal this year was really to learn how to use these tools. I WANT to learn how to do these things. And this year has been chaos. I realized as I tried to share an already prepared instagram post how hard it is to learn new things or do new to us things when there is so much happening in the world. (Hence, why I haven’t been sharing the heck out of this amazing collaboration before now.)

At many other points in my life, I would have be so angry at myself. But I’ve been working on the self-compassion thing. And in this moment I had an A-ha moment. Like THIS IS HARD because chaos/uncertainty/doing-the-so-many-little-things-all-of-the-time THING. How can we keep asking our kids to show up and learn every single day so much. Using new brain pathways during uncertainty. New things in the midst of chaos… everyday… and grading them! It’s like an instapot of pressure on these little people! I am a grown woman, doing something not particularly complicated, but it is new- and this is HARD right now. Maybe not always or forever. But right now it is. And that’s okay.

So I am sharing this with you. I hope that you will check it out. Not to add to your busy chaotic list of “shoulds” but to give something to you that I hope and think will help you to tend to yourself in the midst of chaos. And remember that even “simple” things can be hard right now.

Hold Fast

Folks, I wanted to share my mantra that I have been using so far this year. Hold Fast. My relationship with mantras in general is a bit rocky. Many times, especially when stressed out, I read a mantra or advice about positive thinking and it feels like it misses the mark. (To be honest, it really ticks me off!) Things like “look on the bright side” or “find the silver lining” or any other equally trite expression really hit me the wrong way when life sucks. Because the thing is, I’m usually looking on the bright side and finding the silver linings. That’s my go to. So if I’m struggling and I say I’m struggling that’s not helpful.

So when I came across the idea of Hold Fast. It was soothing. It captures the idea of getting through and connects me to both the intensity of the moment and also the perspective that others have experienced bad storms too. Hold fast is an old mariners term meaning to securely grip the rigging on a ship through a storm. It’s an iconic knuckle tattoo for the hard core. And it expresses the idea of managing despite difficulty, or rather, because of it.

To meditate on the term hold fast, I want to emphasize that it does not mean putting up with situations that you can get out of despite some challenges. Sailors would go around storms if and whenever possible. It means when you find yourself approaching or in an unavoidable storm, hanging on and doing your best (which isn’t always great) until you have other options. It means getting through and was never meant to be an ongoing lifestyle. And this is important. Once a storm has passed, it is really important to untangle from the rigging, get on solid ground, attend to neglected needs, mourn, celebrate, connect. All the things. With all our people.

Coping in the midst of a storm looks differently than coping when things are relatively calm. And each person is going to find different ways to do it. Focus on what you can do to take care of yourself & your family in this moment is empowering. That is what it looks like to Hold Fast right now. Manage the moment and the month. Figure out your own “good enough” parenting, working, eating, cleaning, connecting. Do that. The rest can come later. Make a list if you need to and schedule an appointment to look at next season. If it’s important, you may be lucky enough to come back to it. Not everyone will have that opportunity.

*** I wrote most of this the third week of January. It was a trying month. In fact, because I was resolutely committed to the Hold Fast idea, I didn’t get around to editing this post until now. The end of February. I think the concept still applies, even though for Ontario we are out of our second lock down and getting the opportunity to catch up with things. Things still aren’t 100% normal. People are talking about Pandemic Burnout a lot right now. Because we are coming up to the 1 year mark of managing this unique storm.

A place to start

 There is no way, that I as a white woman can, nor should, speak to the impact of racism on black and indigenous communities and I cannot assume that it impacts each person in the same way. There are so many black and indigenous folx who are sharing their experiences, their stories, that I want to turn attention to them. To listen and to trust and to learn how I can be an ally in my work and in my community. My goal is to keep this brief and concrete and focused on how I can do my work better and it is only the starting place.

Here’s what I am keeping in mind:

1- Traditionally counselling and psychotherapy has been rooted in the white medical model of illness that looks at individuals separate from their family and community.This fails to look outside the person who is suffering to the society that normalizes the systemic abuse of black and indigenous people. This is unhelpful.

2- Counselling and psychotherapy continue to be dominated by white people— in training programs and on the front lines. White people live the benefits of racism and have a lot of unlearning to do. Racism causes trauma. Trauma underlies and worsens every aspect of mental health. As service providers, unless we are actively seeking and using anti oppressive practices, specifically antiracist work in our counselling, we are part of the problem.

3- Many counsellors, psychotherapists, and social workers care deeply about each individual story and the community they work within. At this moment I feel outraged, and I imagine many others in this field share these feelings. We believe in the work of antiracism. Believing in it is not enough.

Here’s what I am committed to doing as a counsellor to bring antiracism into my work:

1- I can commit to antiracism as a white ally. This means I am not centred, saving, or fixing anything. To do this I will continue to learn and unlearn, with intention, about how racism impacts counselling and mental health services. I also do not ask to be cared for by the BIPOC community as I learn and wrestle with my own stuff. I must listen and trust black and indigenous communities and centre them. I will promote my BIPOC colleagues who are doing important antiracist work and actively refer to them and their authority.

2- I can remember that every single person exists within a system- a family and community- and the health of each person relies on the health of the entire ecosystem. I will provide counselling that is grounded in anti oppressive, specifically antiracist, practices. I will work to understand the strengths and struggles of each person in front of me. I will name the power imbalances that exist in the room, the community, and the society that I work within. I will trust each person’s wisdom about their life and their experiences and how racism does or does not impact what has brought them into my office.

3- I can use my social work training, specifically regarding the Social Determinants of Health (how feeling safe and connected in a community, having friends, a job, and a home are as important protective factors to longterm health as genes and risk behaviours) to advocate for antiracist community based services and organizations that improve the safety and connectedness of BIPOC community members. More mental health services and greater access to services will not be enough if they continue to be based in the current system. I can advocate for specific measures that invest in social services and health supports designed by and for BIPOC communities.

On that note- check out the following resources that I am using to learn and unlearn right now- I’ve included numerous types of material: from Netflix to academic research, podcasts, books, events, and Instagram accounts. This is by no means an exhaustive list.

If you’re new to learning and unlearning, here’s a place you could start: https://nmaahc.si.edu/learn/talking-about-race/topics/being-antiracist 

Or Listen to this: https://brenebrown.com/podcast/brene-with-austin-channing-brown-on-im-still-here-black-dignity-in-a-world-made-for-whiteness/

Or follow: https://www.instagram.com/rachel.cargle/

A podcast: https://www.heartoslay.com/

Dive deeper with a book from this reading list:: https://onesearch.library.utoronto.ca/anti-black-racism-reading-list

Watch this: https://www.netflix.com/title/80200549

Social Workers: https://www.socialworktoday.com/archive/exc_0618.shtml

https://www.facebook.com/events/202166560919104/

Academically oriented: 

https://refugeeresearch.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Corneau-and-Stergiopoulos-2012-Anti-racism-and-anti-oppression-in-mental-health-1.pdf

https://www.whiwhresearch.com/

https://www.acrossboundaries.ca/resources

More Resources: https://medium.com/wake-up-call/a-detailed-list-of-anti-racism-resources-a34b259a3eea

Family Book Review #1- Listening to My Body by Gabi Garcia

Pause

Last week I felt I had something helpful to contribute for families facing the next few weeks. This week I struggle to know what to write that has not already been said by those with more knowledge or experience than me. So I’m going to offer a little bit of compassion to myself and the rest of you.

For our family, routines are our saviour. We all sleep better when we’ve been well exercised. We all get along more joyfully when we have been mentally engaged. We are all calmer when we know what to predict even if its just within the flow of our days. But I know that it doesn’t work like that for all families. And I know that I need to have the energy and motivation to lead these routines. So though each day has gone okay thus far, this past weekend I was tired.

As momma, as therapist, as wife, and just as me, things are a bit of a whirlwind. I am sad and grieving the spring activities we do not get to do. I am missing my in person connections with friends and family, even though as we have all discovered, there are so many creative way to connect online and by phone. There are silly things I’m missing… like I’d hoped to get a pedicure and a massage and both those things are out for the foreseeable future. I miss seeing my kids play and rough house with their friends, in joy and exuberance because even their little faces carry more stress now.

So yes, we’re lucky because we’re totally okay right now. At the same time we are grieving, each and every one of us, because the life we each planned to lead over the next few months has been dramatically interrupted. Comparing or belittling our own experiences at this moment is unhelpful, especially when we know and understand that our moments of disappointment are nothing compared to the grief others are experiencing. And yet, the disappointment and sadness or anger arrives, and no amount of perspective taking changes it. Nor does it need to- emotions themselves, just are and so a strategy is just to let them be. Behaviours have consequences, but emotions simply flow, sometimes more quickly than we like, and other times more slowly.

In order to parent our children effectively, validating their emotions, setting limits, and holding space for them to work through and understand how their world is changing, each of us must do our own work- attend to ourselves. Pause and get a sense of our own states. Attend to our own emotions, sensations, thoughts, and beliefs. To pay attention, to notice, what is happening for ourselves. Attending does not mean spending hours meditating or reaching a state of contentedness, “balance,” or zen. It simply means noticing enough of what is our own stuff to be able to see the boundary between what is self, the situation at hand, and the child showing up in that moment. Attending allows some space and some pause in order to choose the next right thing. (Yes, we may have watched Frozen 2 a half dozen times in the past few days…)

So in this moment, this is what I propose for myself and to all parents: attend to your own shit, however that looks for you- have a bath, meditate, go for a run, talk to a friend (or therapist). Obviously, the little darlings still need to be fed and watered, but all the rest of it… take a pause. Attend to yourself, then show up fully to your family - once you’ve sorted through some things and prioritized what’s right for your family. Depending on your values and your current situation- the next right thing in this season for you could be vastly different from others you know, and that’s okay … don’t worry about the pinterest olympics or the homeschool marathon. Whether or not we plan to “teach” our kids over this time away from school- each day, with each interaction-our kids are learning from each of us. All of our kids will learn exactly what they need right now when we bring ourselves genuinely, focus on connection, say sorry and start again when necessary. Pause. Breathe. Connect. Don’t step on the lego.

Some Resources for Attending:

https://www.emotionfocusedfamilytherapy.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Emotions_in_parenting.pdf

https://www.drdansiegel.com/resources/wheel_of_awareness/

https://www.tarabrach.com/meditation-rain-fear/

Parenting Superfeelers During Uncertain Times

During the current mandated staycation full of quality parent-child interaction, I know I am leaning on my training to manage working from home, short-term homeschooling, and parenting a couple Superfeelers during anxious times. The clients I have spoke with over the past week, have put most of their regular treatment goals on hold for now, and are instead focusing on family functioning and resilience to manage the same demands. I am so grateful to be able to support families through this with Emotion Focused Family Therapy. Since I’m drawing on this daily in my own parenting and when supporting my clients, I thought a brief blog might be helpful to others at this time too.

For Superfeelers- people who are sensitive to emotions, change, and perceived threat- empowering them in productive and healthy coping is vital to help them navigate uncertain times. Many kids who are neurodiverse or have underlying anxiety could be considered Superfeelers. How we do this in our family may look differently than it does in yours, but hopefully some of the strategies below are adaptable to your family culture.

A key part of Emotion Focused Family Therapy is helping parents and kids to communicate about emotions effectively. Helping kids to harness the power of language to name their emotions, then to help them regulate by validating their experience, and coming alongside to collaborate and problem-solve. In order to do this, parents generally need a crash course in Validation because our society is really good at Minimization- saying: “At least…” or “It’s not as bad as…” and all the other ways that we do this in our culture. And while perspective taking can be helpful eventually, it’s not so helpful when folks are the most dysregulated. At that moment, validation is much more helpful— especially for Superfeelers.

To validate effectively, the first step then is to name the emotion you notice in your child and imagine all the reasons WHY they may be feeling that, whether or not you think they SHOULD have the feeling- the feeling just is, so you take their perspective on it. You do this using empathy and BECAUSE statements. (Check this out for a little more about EMPATHY- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Evwgu369Jw#action=share)

For example, a conversation that may have been had in my house this morning…

“You are so mad because you want to watch TV and Mom said its homework time. You really want to watch tv because you love that show, because you weren’t done yet, and because you just want to relax. You’re also really mad because it’s march break and you just want a break from school. This feels so unfair to you right now!”

Even though you express understanding of your child’s experience and how they feel, does not mean that homework time isn’t happening. You’re just showing them that you get it. This is followed by the Magic Phrase. A magic phrase is our house is:

“That makes sense.” ~ Your feelings make sense from your perspective.

Another way of saying that could be “That’s understandable.” or “Of course…”

Finally you move alongside the child to problem solve the situation- which could mean collaborating, brainstorming, or limit setting/holding depending on the situation.

“We’re going to pause the show for now and work on homework, and you can finish watching it 20 minutes before we go outside.”

An important thing to note is that if you mislabel the emotion initially, the kid will correct you and you can just go with it. You validate that emotion, sometimes with the same reasoning you imagined for the other emotion, or with other reasons that are understandable. Having the child correct the emotion under the dysregulation might help you to really understand why they are so upset by the limit you’re setting. Also, you may need to dig deep to really resonate with what is going on for your child. At times, this may mean noticing your own emotional state and setting it aside to really connect with your child.

For example, your kid was super excited to go outside for a walk earlier, but when you finally get a moment to take them, they are invested in their current activity, and now they don’t want to go. As a parent that can feel frustrating. Using emotion labeling can help you to talk with your child about what they are feeling, where you are coming from, and options.

“You really wanted to go outside earlier and I had to finish my work. Mom has a break now, if you want to go for a walk before afternoon snack, we need to go now. I see that you are really enjoying colouring now. You want to keep colouring because you are having fun and because your picture isn’t done yet. That makes sense. Let’s make a plan together. Let’s press pause on this now and come back to it after a quick walk around the block. If we don’t go now, Mommy won’t have time until much later. If we pause and come back, then we can do both.”

For my kids helping them to understand WHY things are happening the way they are, the reasons, helps them to regulate. Also, collaborating and adjusting expectations alongside your child can also model that skill for them, so they can respond with it when you may need them to have some flexibility. In our house, “a quick walk around the block,” generally turns into a walk around several blocks and we go with it. To build trust I always reorient them to the activity they had paused once we do return. “You really wanted to colour more, now that we’re home, do you want to finish your picture while I make snack?”

I also find it helpful to collaborate in setting the daily and weekly agenda with the kids. I give them choices in the areas that are flexible, while holding the boundary on the items that are not. They like to know what is happening and when. It makes transitions easier. We also have scheduled days (like today) when Mommy has to get more work done and therefore kiddos get to watch more tv. Other days they get to do more things with Mom or Dad like boardgames, crafts, baking and building. Each day we collaborate picking the Movie of the Day, Topic of the Day, and Meal Planning. We are making calendars together and journaling each morning as part of their homeschooling. We are taking frequent and regular movement breaks, inside and outside, doing both favourite activities and learning new ones. And we are reading funny stories and playing games that make us laugh. We are making music and art a part of each day. Each of these things gives kids agency and an outlet for intense emotions. During times of uncertainty the more you can empower your child with language, expression, choice, and reason the more they can settle into each day. 

For more supports in implementing this approach, including videos, check out:

https://www.mentalhealthfoundations.ca/resources

Other parenting resources I love are:

Superfeeler Digital Handout: https://e78f226b-636a-4b6d-b774-75ca09eb3c0c.usrfiles.com/ugd/c390c7_5b5a60bc8ea84558a4620f980d6b4f92.pdf

Book: The Whole Brain Child by Dr. Dan Siegel

Audio Book: The Gifts of Imperfect Parenting by Brene Brown

Emotional Literacy Toolkit & Blog: https://genmindful.com/blogs/mindful-moments/tagged/emotional-intelligence

Family Strategies During Coronavirus

In my province, school is cancelled for the next 3 weeks. Many workplaces are encouraging a modified schedule or work from home. Meetings and events are cancelled. These are important measures to reduce the transmission of Coronavirus and incidences of the severe respiratory disease COVID-19, and to avoid overwhelming our medical resources.

For the families I work with, figuring out how to deal with this new reality has been a major topic of conversation. Parents want to strike the balance between encouraging good hygiene practices and preventing obsessions for their kids. They want to balance their work and family demands effectively. They want to enjoy the extra time to connect with their family, but also maintain their mental health.

Overall, families want to feel that they are thriving and not simply surviving. Kids are connected to parents and they will pick up on parental insecurities. Finding ways to feel equipped to manage and create flow, will help to set the tone for the home over the next few weeks. This will help to reduce the anxiety kids are feeling. Taking time to choose some strategies to adopt now, could help reduce everyone’s stress throughout the next few weeks.

The following suggestions are some ideas of ways to manage the logistics of radically changed schedules:

• in two parent households look at what family & work responsibilities are required at this time. Even if both parents are able to work from home or have a modified schedule, take time to figure out who will be responsible for what and when. Don’t forget to schedule time when each parent can take personal time regularly— protected time to do essential work uninterrupted, complete household management, participate in digital socializing, workout, etc

• connect with another family in your social network that is following similar social distancing protocol as yours (this is even more important for single parents!!) and limit social engagement to time with them. (Unless this too becomes ill advised by public health.) Share the burden of childcare and shopping runs between your two families & commit to maintaining social distancing practices with which you are both comfortable. Make some plans for regular board game dates and walks in the woods together. This still limits social exposure and may allow more regular schedules for the immediate future. However, if this is something that you find too risky- don’t do it!

• create a flexible daily routine that allows the kids some predictability, which is reassuring, especially for anxious kiddos. Post it on the fridge or in the hallway. Include variety.

  • Indoor Movement Activities: family yoga (ie: Cosmic Kids Yoga), Twister, the floor is lava, balloon volleyball, dance parties.

  • Outside Breaks: (in both the morning & afternoon) photo scavenger hunt, observing birds, insects, and plants and creating a “field journal,” wandering walks to explore the neighbourhood, begin a family garden planter, riding bikes & scooters (do avoid public park playground equipment as is recommended by public health), blowing bubbles, playing soccer or catch.

  • Quiet solo activities: writing & journaling, reading, puzzles, drawing, blocks.

Other concerns are how to keep kids engaged and learning throughout the time away from formal schooling. I’ve also talked to parents who typically homeschool and they wish they could share some of their own strategies with folks feeling overwhelmed right now. Key ideas they’ve shared:

• Use worksheets and online resources, if that eases your anxiety. There are many well-designed options. Just don’t expect your kids to complete sheet after sheet for 6 hours each day. For the most part, homeschooling families integrate learning into daily life and use worksheets sparingly, though they can be helpful.

• Many homeschooling families use “topic based learning.” This idea intrigued me and I feel is a good fit for us. Our family is going to focus on studying Spring— we are going to create a scrapbook as we learn together about weather changes, plan a Spring Welcome Party (for us & our kids), reading books about plants and animals. We’re going explore math & science through cooking & baking and planting a garden. Fundamental for us will be taking lots of pictures and journaling about our observations of the world around us as the seasons change. This doesn’t have to be geared to different grade levels as each child will dig into learning based on their interests and abilities.

• There are some cool online options for activities and learning. For example, Level Up Kids in Guelph is offering a Virtual STEAM camp! It sounds like so much fun! Check out what is available and offered by local businesses in your city. I’ve also heard great things about Outschool, which is an online business specializing in kids courses.

• create an idea board where kids & parents can make suggestions for ways to spend time or questions to investigate together. This is an opportunity to teach kids a new skill or hobby like knitting or cursive writing, and also allow them to pursue learning about topics that are interesting to them.

• in our family we have added some new books, craft supplies, board games & puzzles. We are planning to hold off introducing these until current supplies are used up (crafts) or favourites have become a bit boring. If its not in the budget to get new things, consider stashing some current supplies away and rotating what’s available through various weeks in order to have some variety.

Some of the families that I work with are confident that they will manage the schedule and keep the kids engaged in learning, however they are more worried about family dynamics. These families are often on-the-go and the idea of being cooped up together for an extended period is daunting. They worry about sibling fighting and about managing their own stress. Many families may experience moments of high tension over the next few weeks, this is to be expected and is not a sign of dysfunction. Every family can probably integrate more moments of intentional connection to counteract the stress. Some ways to do this:

• allow everyone to call their own 2 minute breather— kids & parents. It is like a pause button. During your personal time you get to self regulate- whatever that means for you. Then circle back & explain what would be helpful, offer empathy/validation, continue to set limits & maintain them, and continue with the task at hand.

• Create a Calming Corner where there are emotional literacy materials and sensory toys. Machine Washable pillows and a blanket, a couple of fidget toys, puzzle ball, Glitter Jar, identifying emotions poster (Make your own or check out Generation Mindful).

• Work together to find effective consequences for misbehaviour. Introduce this like a new sport or game- every game has rules and consequences- if your kid is super into hockey, use that language. Proper gameplay, mom and dad are the ref, what are the “penalties” and where is the penalty box? How you do this in your family is going to depend on your family culture. The most important thing is to sit down, review together, and create understandable rules & consequences that are consistently enforceable. Make sure everyone is on the same page.

• Along with planning, there are some things you may need to let go of for the time being. Your house may be messier than usual with everyone trying to stay entertained. Screen time may be more abundant than during your regular routine. Everyone may want to sleep in regularly. Everyone may need a day “off” from the routine to just chill out and relax. Leave space for grace with yourself and each other.

• Use Mindfulness as a family to help everyone notice and respond in a more caring way to difficulties. There are some great apps for learning about this evidence-based practice including Headspace, Calm, iMindfulness, Insight Timer, and Ten Percent Happier which even offers a Coronavirus Sanity Guide for free.

• Create a Family Gratitude Ritual. For some this could be a journal where everyone can write “love notes” to each other throughout the day. It could be a practice that happens during a family meal, or during another connection moment like before bed.

Finally, some kids are listening in during news broadcasts and to adult conversations. They have never experienced a stressful major world event and don’t have the same skills to evaluate information trustworthiness, understand media response, or balance the urgent messages with considerate responses. Altogether this is contributing to kids feeling incredibly anxious. Helping your kids to manage is really important.

• Limit and monitor screen time and follow a family schedule that is nourishing.

• Focus on the activities that are known to be most helpful: social distancing and washing hands, without dashing around the house constantly sanitizing everything.

• Keep current without becoming oversaturated in news. In our family this means we are not watching tv news or following multiple news outlets online, instead we are sticking with official government announcements and a few trusted news outlets to stay current each day.

• Watch your words- especially around your kids. What maybe said as a sarcastic remark amongst adults could be misinterpreted by children and lead to heightened anxiety.

• Remember to keep adapting as recommendations are modified based on up-to-date information. What may be okay today may not be advisable next week, and that’s okay.

• Ultimately if you are feeling overwhelmed, connect with supports for you or your kids. Mental Health is Health. Many mental health professionals I know are continuing to work with clients through this time. I will be continuing to offer client sessions and will offer both phone & e-counselling. Connect with a counsellor or therapist near you!

This is not an exhaustive list! Their are many ways to tackle this as a family and get through this time successfully. Do what works for your family!  My hope is that this can be one more resource for families.