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Now what I mean by this isn't to actually meditate, but to take a moment to close my eyes. As I do this I concentrate on my breathing and how I am feeling in that moment. As I do this, I begin to try to push my feelings of stress and anxiety out of my body.

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My parents mean everything to me. When I am upset about something or overwhelmed, I like to take a break and go to talk to them about what is bothering me. They always have good answers about what is bugging me and how I can deal with it, or even help me with it. They help me build strategies in order to cope with my anxiety.

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Just like going for a walk, when I am feeling overwhelmed or stressed, I like to go out on my dirtbike to calm myself. I like to try to go as fast as I can in order to push whatever is overwhelming me or bugging me out of my head. All my concentration is then put into driving so it is an effective way of unwinding.

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When I am feeling overwhelmed with my school work, I like to take a mental break. This might look like me making some food, or watching something on tv or my phone. This just gives me time to get my mind off of something that is overwhelming me and then allows me to come back and work on it once I am ready.

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When I start to get upset, I like to go for a walk to help calm me. I usually go for a walk around my farm in order to calm down. I typically listen to music when I go for a walk to help me take what's bothering me off my mind. As I go for walks I look at what is around me and take in the scenery, which helps me unwind.

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This is another resource we learned in class. Square breathing is when you control your breathing by drawing a square in the air or on a table, and as you get to each side you breath in and then move to the next side and breath out. This is a useful strategy because it can be done anywhere, and can help you calm yourself in almost any public situation when you are feeling any level of stress.

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Grounding Exercise for Anxiety #10: Square Breathing

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This is another technique that we learned in class. Guided mediation is a good way of reducing stress because you can do it for any amount of time, since there are so many different videos and apps out there for it. By stopping what you are doing and listening to the voice and what they are instructing you to do, you are able to focus your breathing and attention on just that. By focusing your attention, it helps lower the stress and push it away. I think guided meditation is useful because it helps you focus on the flow of energy throughout your body, and helps you release it.

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Yoga Nidra - Guided Meditation to Relax | 10min

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By changing your focus from a focal point to a panoramic viewpoint that puts you within the context of what you are seeing, it has calming effects. This makes you more aware of the world around you and makes you more centred. By using your senses, it brings you back to the present and can calm your system. I like this concept and think it is really cool because I did not know that the body was capable of doing something like that with your vision. I feel like this is a medium range process you can do pretty much anywhere.

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Foveal and Panoramic Vision. Dr  Andrew Huberman

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This is a great resource put on by KPR that not only puts on workshops for students, but also teach students how to cope with stressful situations. They also have specific resources for different demographics such as Black Mental Health Week. These techniques are important to learn now as many students move onto Post-Secondary.

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Update: two evening sessions have been added for the Anxiety 101 - Tips & Strategies for Supporting Your Child's Return To School virtual workshop.

Tuesday, July 13, 2021 - 7:00 p.m.

Monday, July 19, 2021 - 6:00 p.m.

The same information is offered in every session. For details and to register, please visit:
ANXIETY 101-Tips & Strategies for Supporting Your Child's Return To School Tickets, Multiple Dates | Eventbrite Anxiety 101: Tips and Strategies for Supporting Your Child's Return to School
KPR's Anxiety 101 workshops on July 13, July 20 and August 6 are now full. But there's good news: the workshop is being recorded and will be posted on this web page for parents and caregivers who are not able to attend the virtual workshops. Watch for details.

In addition, an evening session of the workshop is being organized now. Check back often for news at to ANXIETY 101-Tips & Strategies for Supporting Your Child's Return To School Tickets, Multiple Dates | Eventbrite)

KPR's virtual Anxiety 101 workshop is designed to help parents and caregivers learn how to 'coach' their child or teen to manage their symptoms of anxiety and the anxiety-related behaviours that often keep them from participating in school, social events, and other areas of their life.

2021 Virtual Parent Conference
Please mark your calendars as well for the morning of Saturday, October 16, when KPR's 20 th Annual Parent Conference will focus on children's and teens' mental health. More information on this virtual conference will be sent to all families later this summer.

Mental Health Week and is Children's Mental Health Week are May 3-9, 2021. The theme this year is #GetReal - Understanding Our Emotions. As we know, this has been an incredibly difficult year and for many, symptoms of pain and anxiety are intense. However, research demonstrates that when we try to ignore or distract ourselves from unpleasant feelings, they tend to heighten. Instead, by understanding and naming our feelings, sadness, anger and pain can feel less intense.

Please see the attached letter to KPR families for links to helpful mental health resources. In particular, please note that, given the overwhelming interest in this week's virtual workshop on Parenting Resilient Kids, we have added a second session on May 13. To register for this free session, please visit https://bit.ly/3tngrZ1 or click on the link in the attached letter.

KPR's Professional Services team has put together a "Mental Health Quilt" that is easy to use in a virtual format, with resources for students of all ages. Each square in the quilt will link you to one of our favourite mental health or Social Emotional Learning (SEL) resources.

In addition, here are some helpful links to more resources:
School Toolkit Virtual Stress Lessons Free Online Mental Health Workshop
Due to the overwhelming interest in this week's virtual workshop on Parenting Resilient Kids, we have added a second session on Thursday, May 13, from 12:30-1:30 p.m. To register for this free session, please visit https://bit.ly/3tngrZ The goal of the interactive online presentation is to explore the signs of stress and to encourage healthy coping skills.
Mental Health Services and Supports for the Black Community
Black Mental Health Week was March 1-7, 2021.

We would like to provide our KPR community with information about Bill 178, Black Mental Health Day Act, 2020, as well as several important resources to support student learning and engagement about anti-Black Racism and Mental Health.There are a number of excellent Mental Health services and supports providing equitable, culturally sensitive therapeutic support to the Black Community.
https://blackwomeninmotion.org/
Black Women in Motion is a Toronto-based, youth-led organization that empowers and supports the advancement of Black women and survivors of sexual violence.

An online therapy service that offers a diverse range of services, approaches and modalities catered to client needs and preferences. Services operate in an anti-oppressive, anti-racist framework, are culturally, spiritually and linguistically appropriate, and therapists are racially diverse.

The Black Youth Helpline focuses on community development and support for Black youth across Canada. Its mission is the primary prevention of social [and] psychological breakdown in communities through a focus on education, health and community development."

https://blackmentalhealth.ca/

Its mission is to provide accessible, culturally affirming, affordable, evidence-based mental health services to the Black community through education, advocacy, and provision of resources.

https://www.acrossboundaries.ca/

Across Boundaries provides equitable, holistic mental health and addiction services for racialized communities in the GTA. It provides a range of mental health services within Anti-Racism/Anti-Black racism and Anti-Oppression frameworks, which address the negative impact of racism and discrimination on mental health and well-being.

2020 Parent Conference presentation Drop the Worry Ball is for parents and guardians of children and teens

A new student self-care tip sheet, Self-Care 101, has also been created that may be helpful for our older students (JR, Int, SR).
https://smho-smso.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Self-Care-101.pdf
Please visit the School Mental Health Ontario website for more resources and updates about supporting mental health during the COVID19 pandemic.
https://smho-smso.ca/blog/how-to-support-student-mental-health-during-the-covid-19-pandemic/
We've partnered with ‪@jackdotorg and ‪@KidsHelpPhone to create an online hub of COVID-19 mental health resources to help students take care of their mental health and look out for one another. Please share. It's more essential now than ever. jack.org/covid

Toolbox activities are for kindergarten and primary students
French Version - Nos enfants et le stress

Everyday mental health is for primary, junior, intermediate students
French version - Des activités pour la santé mentale au quotidien

Be Well toolbox for Teens is for intermediate and senior students
Parent Resources from Psychology Foundation

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Update: two evening sessions have been added for the Anxiety 101 - Tips & Strategies for Supporting Your Child's Return To School virtual workshop. Tuesday, July 13, 2021 - 7:00 p.m. Monday, July 19, 2021 - 6:00 p.m. The same information is offered in every session.

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This was one of the examples used in class. I found that this was useful because it broke down the fundamentals of breathing techniques. I find that breathing techniques can be helpful when I am feeling overwhelmed and they allow me to take a minute to do a physical check in with myself. I can use these as a quick response when feeling stressed, or do a longer one when I feel like I really need it.

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The term "fight or flight" is also known as the stress response. It's what the body does as it prepares to confront or avoid danger. When appropriately invoked, the stress response helps us rise to many challenges. But trouble starts when this response is constantly provoked by less momentous, day-to-day events, such as money woes, traffic jams, job worries, or relationship problems.

Health problems are one result. A prime example is high blood pressure, a major risk factor for heart disease. The stress response also suppresses the immune system, increasing susceptibility to colds and other illnesses. Moreover, the buildup of stress can contribute to anxiety and depression. We can't avoid all sources of stress in our lives, nor would we want to. But we can develop healthier ways of responding to them. One way is to invoke the relaxation response, through a technique first developed in the 1970s at Harvard Medical School by cardiologist Dr. Herbert Benson. The relaxation response is a state of profound rest that can be elicited in many ways, including meditation, yoga, and progressive muscle relaxation.

Breath focus is a common feature of several techniques that evoke the relaxation response. The first step is learning to breathe deeply.

Deep breathing benefits

Deep breathing also goes by the names of diaphragmatic breathing, abdominal breathing, belly breathing, and paced respiration. When you breathe deeply, the air coming in through your nose fully fills your lungs, and the lower belly rises.

For many of us, deep breathing seems unnatural. There are several reasons for this. For one, body image has a negative impact on respiration in our culture. A flat stomach is considered attractive, so women (and men) tend to hold in their stomach muscles. This interferes with deep breathing and gradually makes shallow "chest breathing" seem normal, which increases tension and anxiety.

Shallow breathing limits the diaphragm's range of motion. The lowest part of the lungs doesn't get a full share of oxygenated air. That can make you feel short of breath and anxious.

Deep abdominal breathing encourages full oxygen exchange - that is, the beneficial trade of incoming oxygen for outgoing carbon dioxide. Not surprisingly, it can slow the heartbeat and lower or stabilize blood pressure.

Practicing breath focus

Breath focus helps you concentrate on slow, deep breathing and aids you in disengaging from distracting thoughts and sensations. It's especially helpful if you tend to hold in your stomach.

First steps. Find a quiet, comfortable place to sit or lie down. First, take a normal breath. Then try a deep breath: Breathe in slowly through your nose, allowing your chest and lower belly to rise as you fill your lungs. Let your abdomen expand fully. Now breathe out slowly through your mouth (or your nose, if that feels more natural).

Breath focus in practice. Once you've taken the steps above, you can move on to regular practice of controlled breathing. As you sit comfortably with your eyes closed, blend deep breathing with helpful imagery and perhaps a focus word or phrase that helps you relax.

Ways to elicit the relaxation response

Several techniques can help you turn down your response to stress. Breath focus helps with nearly all of them:

Creating a routine

You may want to try several different relaxation techniques to see which one works best for you. And if your favorite approach fails to engage you, or you want some variety, you'll have alternatives. You may also find the following tips helpful:

Choose a special place where you can sit (or lie down) comfortably and quietly.

Don't try too hard. That may just cause you to tense up.

Don't be too passive, either. The key to eliciting the relaxation response lies in shifting your focus from stressors to deeper, calmer rhythms - and having a focal point is essential.

Try to practice once or twice a day, always at the same time, in order to enhance the sense of ritual and establish a habit.

Try to practice at least 10-20 minutes each day.

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Relaxation techniques: Breath control helps quell errant stress response - Harvard Health

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Relaxation techniques - such as deep breathing - can help control stress and the "fight or flight" response that can interfere with everyday life....