Making the Time to Grieve: Even if Nobody has Died

When we love and care for someone who suffers from a serious mental illness, there are beautiful, joyful moments where everything is well managed.
The best of everything and everyone is possible.
I try to take pictures with my heart at those moments.

Then, every number of years, there is a major health crisis. (more…)

Breaking the silence of the glass ceiling

Listening to the Harvey Weinstein story brought back some memories. One of them is of a parenting workshop participant I had several years ago. As a Family Life Educator, in my workshops, because it’s such an important topic, I often opened up the concept of how to teach children values and sexuality. This workshop was no different. (more…)

How to Support a Sexual Assault Survivor in the Workplace

sexual-assault(Published in Huffington Post)

OK. So every week I sit and write an article. I try to be practical and use my critical thinking skills looking to give people tools. Honestly, this week, I was truly distracted and disgusted by the Access Hollywood video and subsequent denials by the Republican nominee. While people are asking themselves if he should get a pass because they don’t like his opponent, my mind has gone straight to his victims and how courageous they are. But also, to the victims that are keeping silent out of fear of reprisals from this litigious and entitled wealthy monster. (more…)

Mental Health Stigma Creates Mental Illness: A Personal Story

Don't speak upOn January 27th, for the 6th year, Bell Canada is rolling out their incredible “Let’s Talk Program”. They are committed to developing anti-stigma programs in Canadian organizations and offering solutions to Mental Health issues which plague us all.

Let’s get this straight. Mental Health is Physical. The brain is part of your body!  We need to protect it and care for it properly.

In this short video, I share a personal story of how the lessons of stigma affected my ability to speak up and ask for help. I’m one of the lucky ones in that I am OK today. But it was a harder road than it needed to be and if I can help you feel a little less alone, here you go.

If you are wondering about if you should do more about your mental health, just asking that question means that the answer is a resounding YES! Don’t wait for a crisis. I’m going to be blunt here. If you are saying “it’s OK, I’m used to this stress”. Duh. It’s NOT OK and people shouldn’t be “used to” anything chronically unhealthy!

If you are worried about someone you love, there are ways to engage in a conversation to help them not self-stigmatize and accompany them to getting help while protecting your own mental health. If you are risking your mental health to get them health, refer to the paragraph above.

If you would like me to come to your company or organization to Demystify Mental Illness in the workplace, I’d love to hear from you. Education is key to better outcomes.

Feel free to contact me with private messages. May God bless you and protect your brain and those around you!


BIO

Monique works with organizations who want to reduce conflict to create a culture of collaboration, engagement and productivity. The most successful leaders are not infallible when faced with someone who “drives them crazy!” Her strategies to empower people to better understand each other and have better outcomes, while having fun, are appreciated by all who meet her. She draws from 30 years of crisis intervention work, she is a Level II Accredited Trainer for DISC as a Human Behavior Consultant and a Certified NLP Professional Coach. She loves meeting people and getting to know them and their industry. So feel free to reach out.

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