‘Somatization’ may be an unfamiliar or complex sounding word, but, in fact, it describes a phenomenon that everyone experiences. Somatization is the physical (or body) expression of emotions and stress.  Everyone somatizes; for example, feeling butterflies in your stomach when you are nervous. 

We are seeking feedback from both families and health professionals to help enhance our Healthy Living Toolkits! Whether you've used the toolkits or not, we want to hear from you!

These toolkits provide information, resources and tools to help children and youth with mental health challenges develop healthy living habits. Toolkit topics include healthy eating, physical activity, sleep and stress management. 

Taming Worry Dragons is a creative approach to CBT that is designed to help anxious children learn how to cope with their worries. The approach can be adapted by therapists and parents to match the developmental level and interests of the child involved. The first Taming Worry Dragons manual was published in 1995, and the program is now used in schools and mental health programs for children throughout BC and across Canada and the US, A number of manuals have been developed since this time, and have expanded to include manuals for teens, school professionals, and health professionals.

Good news!  Resilience, the ability to bounce back from difficult times, is a skill that we can all learn.  There are things that detract from resilience and things that help to build it.  We aren’t given a set dose of it and asked to navigate life with our allotted serving.  Knowing this is a huge reason why I began sharing what I learned from my own parenting journey with others. 

We are very excited to share with you our 2018/2019 Online Annual Report  – it shows our accomplishments and initiatives

The Child, Youth & Reproductive Mental Health programs at BC Children’s Hospital are pleased to announce the launch of the Mental Health Act Video for Youth – Being Certified:  bcyouthmentalhealthact.ca

Tuesday, May 7th is National Child and Youth Mental Health Day! Started by the Institute of Families for Child & Youth Mental Health, this day is about having caring conversations and making connections between children, youth, and caring adults in their lives.

For the second time around, it has been my privilege and pleasure running the Youth Ambassador program, the Kelty Centre's flagship youth engagement program that brings together young people from all over the province in creative projects that aim to raise mental health awareness and reduce stigma in schools and communities across BC.