I’m currently on a mini New Mentality tour visiting 3 of our groups across the province. First on the stop, our New Mentality Halton group, who are with our partner agency Reach Out for Kids! After somewhat of a long commute and listening to some Bollywood music along the way of course, I arrived to the Halton Regional Building in Oakville, Ontario where our youth were meeting this week. My favourite part of the work I get to do, is meeting our inspiring youth who do some incredible work all across the province! When I arrived, I noticed how beautiful the meeting space was set up, and of course the snacks helped – especially the brownies! There was a warm and comforting feeling being in the space right from the start. Before the meeting began, we all of course discussed the phenomenal Shakira and Jennifer Lopez half time show during the Super Bowl this past Sunday.
After some laughs and sharing a bit about ourselves, the youth got right into the project they’re working on this year. Launching season 2 of their podcast Youth Minds Matter, which will premiere during Children’s Mental Health Week this May! One thing I’ve noticed and love about all my visits to our different groups is how dedicated our youth, and adult allies are when it comes to advocacy work around the stigma associated with mental illness. These youth were incredibly driven, organized, and focused. They all had roles and took the initiative to work on 1-2 episodes each, from writing the script, ensuring that each episode felt authentic, to creating a recording schedule. You could tell right away how much this project meant to the youth, and the amount of work and effort they had put into it. There was a great discussion around one of the episodes that’ll be apart of season 2; the cultural barriers to mental health. We took some time to have an in-depth conversation on how we need more diversity and ways we can outreach to communities where mental illness is extremely stigmatized. This was an important conversation to be had, as the New Mentality has been focusing on how we can be more inclusive, be better allies, and host conversations around race and identity in the mental health system and how they intersect. After the meeting, I left feeling eager to bring all the amazing ideas our youth shared on how we can grow as a network. Thank you to the wonderful adult allies and youth for having me join in their first meeting of the new year. I’m looking forward to the incredible impact you will leave on everyone through your podcast. I can’t wait to visit again! To keep up to date with everything our New Mentality group in Halton is up to check out their Instagram @tnmhalton
Each year for the past 11 years, The New Mentality has hosted our annual summer leadership training retreat known as Disable the Label (DTL) for youth organizers in the mental health system. The event brings together over 100 participants, including youth leaders, community organizers, and adult allies from across the province, who gather to learn and enhance their youth engagement skills, share their local projects, and build meaningful connections. At Disable the Label, together we grow our capacity to be mental health advocates and use our voices to make a positive change in the children’s mental health system in Ontario.
Disable the Label 2018 was the next step in The New Mentality’s evolution. As always, we focused on youth leadership, youth engagement in mental health, and our efforts and aspirations toward system change. With the growth of the network, so too did the scope of our intentions widen to become more intentional towards anti-oppressive practices and spaces.
DAY ONE
The first day was about arriving. Finding the balance between getting out of our comfort zones and allowing space for our electrified nerves to settle as we began to meet new friends and settle into the DTL experience. As a way to nourish meaningful connections, youth and adult allies were placed into “Crews,” which were small sub-groups of 8-10 people who we spent the next four days together learning, growing, and supporting each other through the different sessions and activities. Our Crews allowed us to meet and interact with others doing change-making work around child and youth mental health and our peers practicing youth engagement across the province. It can be nerve-wracking to step away from the familiarity of our New Mentality home groups, but each person was willing to try.
In our Crews, we created flags that encouraged us to explore who we are as individuals – looking as deeply and sharing as much as we felt comfortable with – and looking at the identity of our newly formed Crew. Each Crew approached the flag in a unique way. Some had each crew member design a fabric patch to show some of who they were individually and then created a separate, collective patch that represented their Crews; others created one flag patch to which everyone contributed, while others worked on their individual patches and found ways to piece it together to showcase the collective group. Although some of our Crews approached the activity in different ways, at the end of the activity each Crew had beautiful and creative flags that represented who they were as individuals and as a collective.
DAY TWO
One of the cornerstones of DTL is that we create our space together, in a workshop known as Braver Space. Braver Space is a session that explores how we can be in a more honest relationship with ourselves, with each other, and with the land. As a group, we create vulnerable expressions of our individual needs and offerings in order to thrive over the upcoming week and tend to the collective needs of the group. Some of the needs listed included compassion, humour, and non-judgement, while offerings ranged from jokes to hugs to compassionate listening and support.
The afternoon brought us into an anti-oppression workshop. Since we were all approaching the subject from different levels of understanding, this workshop was intended to be an introduction to what oppression is and how we see it manifested in our daily lives. We explored the different ways we group ourselves – our commonalities and our differences – as a way to sink into the idea of marginalization and oppression. Digging deeper, we looked at societal messaging, systemic oppression and discrimination, and how those influences play out in our day-to-day lives. As we walked along the barriers faced by different marginalized groups, we turned our gazes towards our own New Mentality groups to ask ourselves what barriers might exist for others to join and what solutions might be laying next to them, yet to be uncovered.
In the evening we focused on caring for ourselves and having fun! We took the time to look after our own individual needs in order to re-energize for the next two days of DTL. We sought out lightheartedness and relaxation. From frisbee to magic tricks, poetry to music jam sessions, yoga to basketball, to journaling and even bracelet making, there were a variety of activities to choose from, each led by DTL participants.
DAY THREE
On the morning of day three, we followed the energy from the previous day. Rather than doing our planned World Cafe, we opened with ceremony, acknowledging our individual journeys through oppressive spaces, the emotions stirred, and then intertwining ourselves to move together, united. Space was held for introducing ourselves to the entire circle – to see others and to be seen ourselves – in order to find comfort in the connections with those around us.
The afternoon brought us into several concurrent sessions, including a safeTALK training, an Adult Ally session, and a youth engagement session hosted by the Office of the Ontario Child Advocate.
Adult Ally Session: In the last few years, this has become an annual session, providing space for adult allies to have one-on-one time with each other. It offers the opportunity for them to discuss current challenges as well as share in successes and how they were achieved.
SafeTALK: With the growth of our work around child and youth mental health and the practice of youth engagement, it is important to ensure that youth have the capacity to hold these conversations while remaining safe themselves.
About SafeTALK: safeTALK is a half-day alertness training that prepares anyone 15 or older, regardless of prior experience or training, to become a suicide-alert helper. Most people with thoughts of suicide don’t truly want to die but are struggling with the pain in their lives. Through their words and actions, they invite help to stay alive. safeTALK-trained helpers can recognize these invitations and take action by connecting them with life-saving intervention resources, such as caregivers trained in ASIST.
OCA Session: The Ontario Child Advocate brought a team of Youth Amplifiers and staff to deliver a workshop on youth engagement. The workshop looked at how the OCA incorporates youth engagement into its work and supports youth-led projects, with a focus on the Feathers of Hope project.
As we moved into our final activity, a series of art stations, we returned to art as a way to hold and express conversations around our roles in youth engagement. We broke into smaller groups and had conversations about leadership, and explored what each of our own authentic leadership looks like. Through painting, poetry, drama, and sewing/mixed media, these discussions were guided by things we had learned along our journeys at home, as well as pulling in new learning from the past few days. We explored the different roles we carry at different times, as well as what we need to feel empowered within these roles.
Of course, it wouldn’t be a Disable the Label without the Talent Not Required show. Organized and emceed by DTL participants, Nick and Murphy, it was a night to share poetry, music, dance, etc. Regardless of how silly or random, each person stepping forward – daring to be so vulnerable – was truly held and supported by all.
DAY FOUR
On our last day together, youth and adult allies had the chance to set the agenda through an Open Space session. Fed by our own unique experiences, this knowledge exchange encouraged us to call our own sessions based on something we wanted to offer as a teaching or to further explore any topics that burned inside us. Building on this momentum, after our Open Space session we returned to our home groups in order to share what each of us had learned over the week. This was a time for looking forward – where was each group heading? – and using our learning to inform on our direction. This was a time for action planning – how can we arrive at our goal? – to pull from our collective knowledge to guide us.
The end of day four signalled the end of the week, and we brought our time together to a close in circle. Each Bandana Crew presented their flag – snippets of individual stories that were woven together. Beneath open skies, we honoured those who have been with The New Mentality over the years – the ones returning and welcomed in the newness. We breathed in the wisdom of our elders, of generations before us, and opened our hearts to the connections between us, silent beneath the surface. Messages of family, formed outside of genetic codes, whispered that we are not alone on our journeys and hinted towards all we can accomplish when we are united – the magic that we are.
Written in Collaboration with Caitlin Robb and TNM Staff
It was about halfway through the afternoon on Monday, July 27th, 2015 when our vehicle took the turn into Geneva Park. As soon as that turn happened my mood instantly changed and a smile emerged onto my face. We were driving through and my mind began to wander, driving past several landmarks and points that would bring back good memories from previous years, I took a deep sigh and thought to myself “I’m home”.
There were two new members with us this year and they seemed quite nervous the whole ride up. This being my third year at Disable the Label and seeing how much it has changed my life, I was so eager to explain how much The New Mentality and Disable the Label has meant to me and that they don’t have to worry about a single thing. As I was explaining it to them the smile never left my face and the more and more I began to explain it to them I noticed that they were beginning to become less nervous and more comfortable with the situation which made me really happy.
We went in to the registration building to figure out where we would be staying and we didn’t even make it to the desk before I was bombarded with hugs from good friends that I have met through previous Disable the Label camps. It was like one of those scenes that you would see in a movie, I just dropped my bags and we all like ran and hugged each other, it was absolutely amazing!
The thing that I love the most about Disable the Label is the people and the environment while you’re there. Some people I’ve only met three or four times and others this would of been the first year that I met them. But either way this community is like a family to me, they are people that I can trust and people that I can count on. But more importantly, the kind of people that I can be myself around. I personally find it very difficult to get comfortable around people and trust them, even if I’ve known the person for a long time. But whenever I go to a New Mentality event or a Disable the Label conference, all of that completely goes away. For the first time in my life I’ve found a community that doesn’t judge me, doesn’t bully me, and just accepts me for who I am. Most of these people I’ve only met a few times and I feel that I can just be myself and speak my mind. Which is absolutely unheard of for me, so I think it’s really great that there is a place that I know that I will always have and friendships that will last a life time.
Over the course of the four days at Disable the Label this year we learned very valuable skills that we were able to take back to our communities, such as:
– Public Speaking Skills
– Event Planning
– Youth Engagement
– Spreading Awareness
– How can we Help Ourselves (Selfcare)
– How we can Help People who are Struggling
– How can we Help our Communities
– The Differences of Positive and Negative Coping
– And so much more!
As always The New Mentality has yet again put on an amazing performance at this year’s Disable the Label, overall this has been the best one yet. If I were to be asked on a favourite moment at Disable the Label 2015 I wouldn’t be able to choose, that’s how good it was this year! Whether it was the World Café hosted by The New Mentality, Spoken N’ Heard’s amazing event planning session, the campfire, the Talent Not Required Show, or the endless nights that I would stay up talking with new and old friends. These were a few of all of the amazing memories that I had of this retreat.
The New Mentality has made a huge difference in my life and I don’t know where I’d be today if I was never introduced to this organization. This community has transformed me to become into a stronger and more confident individual. I believe it is truly amazing on what The New Mentality has done. The fact that there hundreds of youth just like me, who want to make a difference in their communities, make changes, and spread awareness is just amazing. The amount of people’s lives that The New Mentality has changed is huge; just imagine the amount of lives each individual is changing because of this organization.
A huge thank you to all of the Hosting Team, Jermaine, Caitlin, Amanda, Deserae, Peter, Vanessa, Victoria, Violetta, Gerard, & of course Jasmine, Mary-Anne, and Caralyn from The New Mentality for putting this all together and making it such a empowering and life-changing experience for everyone. Within the next stages of our lives there will be huge changes in our society because of the work we are all doing, so keep doing what you are doing everyone. We are all making a huge difference in our communities. Remember to #Selfcare everyone and I’ll hopefully see you next year at Disable the Label 2016. One Love <3
When Gloww (Giving Light Offers Worth and Wellness) heard about Disable the Label over a year ago, everyone was excited for the experience of camp. Having only been with Gloww for a month, I didn’t know much about it other than that it would be a Leadership camp. I’ve always been interested in learning more about mental health and learning how to be a better advocate, and role model. We were told that only 3 youth could come to camp, so we had to vote on who was able to go. It took a while to decide, but after almost an hour of people giving up their positions, to us even pulling names out of a hat, the names were chosen. Sarah, Anna and I. I admit it wasn’t the best way to choose who was going to have this amazing experience, but I decided I was going to make the best of it even if it meant not all of our group members could go.
DAY 1
We arrived about 5pm the Tuesday night. Almost right away you could tell it wasn’t going to be like those summer day camps you’re used to going to as a kid. Well of course not, it’s a leadership camp. After getting settled into our rooms we would be staying in for the week, everyone headed out for our first activity. Day one was all about the introductions and “Getting Grounded.” Mother nature decided to make it rain but we put the best into creating our Collective Sculpture. We all picked something that showed how we were feeling at the time and made a sculpture of all our items, and sharing our stories about them. The rest of the evening was spent getting settled in and getting to know each other a little better.
DAY 2
Day two’s theme, was Open Mind. Our first activity of the day was to share with the group what we were hoping to get out of the experience at DTL. We learned what DTL was all about and what would be happening through the week. As a group we created a mural to show what we wished to happen through the week, and how we wish to be treated.
Our next activity was for our groups to start sharing our stories. Our group had a chance to meet Shed the Light before we shared our personal story. They are from Orangeville, Ontario. About 45 minutes from Gloww. They also share presentations at schools. It was amazing to see that each New Mentality group is similar in ways, but also very different.
One of my favourite activities of the week was the Continuum of Empowerment. This is where we learned how youth have an impact on people and in mental health, and how much we can empower and inspire others with words. Another favourite of mine was the World Café! In a group of four, there were three rounds, where we brainstormed answers to 3 different questions based around mental health. We got to understand more about what the New Mentality means to us as a community, and what more we need as a community to understand mental health as a whole. The hosts helped us create an awesome poem as a group by the end of the session!
At the end of the day our last activity was Human Clay. I sadly didn’t participate as I wasn’t feeling well, but from what I heard from others it was a pretty cool way to learn about other issues such as racism, and other things that impact a community. I’m sure this was an amazing activity and would love the chance to participate next year if it is included again! The rest of the night we spent relaxing and hanging out by the campfire outside. It was a long night and most of us stayed up pretty late.
DAY 3
Thursday was sadly, our last full day. I slept in that morning and did not get a chance to participate in the singing and dancing circle that Peter and Jasmine hosted. I was told it was pretty great, though! When I woke up everyone was down at the Art Making Station. Sarah and I worked on some Mandela’s, and they ended up in Sarah’s page of the DTL scrapbook! As well as a drawing Sarah found but we weren’t sure who it belonged to so she put that in as well.
The next activity of the day, and I think my favourite was Skills Marketplace. The group got to participate in different sessions hosted by the hosts. The first session I participated in was Modern Day Griot, hosted by Jasmine and Camille. Jasmine shared her experience in sharing her story, and the group got to learn how to improve our own stories as we wish to share them in many ways from spoken word, to video, or art and sculptures. We learned how to structure our stories in a format that is easy for others to understand, and how to get over the anxiety that comes with sharing personal stories. Session number two, was Creative Facilitation, hosted by Peter. The group learned ways to make a social situation more comfortable, and how to speak and share as a group in a more effective way.
I feel like everyone can agree that the rest of the night was probably the best way to spend the last day; the Talent Not Required Show. Everyone had such amazing talent to share, even if they might not realise it! We all had a lot of fun watching everyone perform. I think everyone can look forward to that for next year as well. Again, it was another long night. But I think everyone wanted the last night to go on as long as possible.
DAY 4
Sadly, on to Day four, the last day of the week. Of course, Friday morning was all about saying our goodbyes, and packing up for the long ride we all had to get home. Our first thing to do for the morning was Show and Tell, in which groups gathered around to share each others items they’ve been selling in our communities. Gloww ended up giving away one of our hoodies- congratulations Savanna Berry! She was the most enthusiastic about getting the chance to win, and after putting everyone’s names in a hat of who entered, no surprise, our Allies ended up picking her name out!
Our next and final activity of the week was Moving Forward, in which we shared how we felt our communities can move forward with what we are doing in the New Mentality. We had more conversations as small groups of how we can move forward and continue to work together. It was a great way to end the week and we learned a lot about how we can help improve as the New Mentality. Also realising that together, we can do great things!
Finally, we all came together to participate in the Closing remarks and ceremony. Cathy and Caralyn hosted the Closing remarks in which we all got to hear what our next steps as the New Mentality would be. The Ceremony was hosted by Savanna and TJ, who helped us in a spiritual, cultural way to say goodbye by performing a ritual and helping us understand our Aboriginal ancestors. We got to thank everyone for being a part of the event, and I also said my part that I felt needed to be said from myself and Gloww.
Thank you to the hosts, Jasmine, Peter, Cathy, Caralyn, Amanda, Jaydon, Spencer, Camille, Jordon, Duane, Jermaine, and everyone else involved for making DTL such an unforgettable experience. Myself, and the others who were with me from Gloww, have learned a lot that we hope to be able to share with the rest of Gloww, and our community as a whole. I’d also like to thank Gloww itself for giving me a chance to have this amazing experience. It is something I will always remember and it is so hard to explain the experience to others. It’s definitely a “You had to be there!” type of experience. We will definitely keep in touch with everyone and most definitely hope to be back next year for DTL2015 For now, don’t forget to #SelfCare!
The New Mentality held our annual ‘Disable the Label’ leadership training retreat this past July at YMCA Geneva Park in Orillia, Ontario. The retreat was a huge success and our largest ever, hosting 65 people including 36 youth. 11 CMHO agencies were represented, as well as community partners and special guests from across the province.
Over the four days, delegates participated in a diverse array of activities, including team building exercises, leadership skill development sessions, reflective art making activities, yoga and meditation, and outdoor sports. And of course, it wouldn’t be Disable the Label without a Talent (Not Required) Show, and lots of dancing!
I would imagine that upon returning home from Disable the Label, many of us were faced with the question, ‘how was it?’ And of course the inevitable first thought: where to begin! To help with that question we’ve created a day-by-day recap of our journey, along with some photos.
Thanks again to all of the youth leaders, adult allies, and special guests for the incredible contributions, and thanks to our generous sponsors: the Ministry and Children and Youth Services, the Laidlaw Foundation, and the J.W. McConnell Family Foundation.
Opening – Day One
On our first evening, we opened with an artful weaving exercise, where together we created a beautiful centre-piece. The centre-piece came to reflect many of the core values of the retreat: collaboration, vibrancy, and inter-connectedness. Looking back, it is a beautiful representation the beauty that emerges when our connections are embraced and realized.
We moved into an introspective exercise in which we considered times we have felt afraid, and times we have felt hopeful. We thought about the names we give ourselves and how we identify with these titles. Then, we sat for a moment and considered how big life is, and what we would name ourselves if it was done without hope and without fear.
The System – Day Two
Outside, the morning brought no relief from the heat, nor did the light rain drizzling down. The early risers started with yoga and meditation before the entire group came together. We spent the morning exploring challenging concepts and looking into ourselves.
Our first group activity was an Appreciative Inquiry session. Through the four stages of Appreciative Inquiry – Discovery, Dreaming, Designing (through Dialogue) and Destiny – we explored how change happens in the mental health system. To add a twist and to practice engaging in different ways, we used the Six Thinking Hatsto help us frame our questions. Before lunch we squeezed in a quick introduction to models of systems changes, looking at how we can define how we engage and co-create.
After lunch we moved into a World Café, through which we further explored leadership. In small groups we discussed inspiring leadership qualities, examples of interesting and exciting leadership, and what kind of leadership we think is needed now.
After two theory-heavy exercises we took a break for lunch, before we shifted into an outdoor arts exercise. On Solo Nature Walks, we reflected on our limiting beliefs, and what we need for our leadership to be strong. We thought about our Star of Potential, the gifts we each have that no one else has. Through our notes and collected items, we build a beautiful outdoor sculpture that remained up for the rest of the retreat, reminding us of our personal introspections.
After dinner, we had a Self-Care Marketplace using Open Space Technology. It is very important to take care of ourselves as young leaders often stepping into challenging situations. We opened it up to the group to share our personal strategies. Through discussions and practice, we learned about:
Yoga
Printmaking
Origami, Board games and Puzzles
Mindfulness
Magic tricks
Music and jamming
Drawing and colouring
Dancing
Although we were all exhausted from a long day full of deep reflection and collaboration, most of us were too full of joy and energy to sleep. We hung out in the living room where we made art, played board games, attempted Peter’s many mind-bending puzzles, played music, and chatted into the night… Some later than others!
The New Mentality – Who are we, anyway? – Day Three
The New Mentality is a province-wide network, with strong geographic diversity. From as far north and east as Pembroke and Ottawa, through Toronto, and across to Sarnia and Windsor, with many in between! We try to stay connected – the internet helps – but at the end of the day our groups often work in isolation. The theme of this day was to get to know ourselves, as groups and as a network. To this end, we did a reflective art exercise, gave groups an opportunity to showcase their work, shared some of our evaluation results, and did a talent show to further display our unique gifts!
To get ourselves fully into the space and moment, we began with a meditative painting exercise. Phyllis led us through a series of strokes using different colours and brushes, with which we each painted a personal landscape. We painted in four elements: the Universe, the Ground, Humanity, and Me. As we quietly wandered around the room, we shared a quiet honuring space together and observed others’ finished paintings. We saw, incredibly, that we are at once so similar and so different in how we map our existence. Some shared that the exercise helped calm their anxieties. Some shared that it was rooting.
We then entered a Storytelling Marketplace, during which each group had the opportunity to do a presentation about their work and showcase any media, swag, material, or anything else they’ve developed. As each group presented, the audience listened using guiding questions that aimed to tease out skills and bigger systems change questions, and gave feedback to the presenters to initiate learning conversations. People enjoyed the opportunity to learn from one another, and to celebrate one another’s accomplishments.
A highlight of the Storytelling Marketplace was the Evaluation presentation. Between January to June, CMHO’s (now former) placement student, Audrey, developed an outcomes evaluation. As part of her research, she conducted focus groups with all of the New Mentality groups. Audrey discussed some of her findings in an open space session, and shared the beautiful visualization of the evaluation created by a graphic facilitator.
Building Resiliency, Amplifying our Voice
After a long lunch break, with some time to swim and just hang out, we moved into our second Open Space Technology session. Now that we had spent time looking into ourselves as leaders, sharing our own work, and learning about the work of others, we were ready to explore the critical question: What do New Mentality groups need to build their resilience? The following sessions were hosted:
Funding & Sustainability – Show me the $$
Opening Talking and Chill Space
What can make Disable the Label sing?
How can a Caring Classroom be created?
Animating The New Mentality Website and Facebook Page
Self-compassion
YSI Video Project – Tracking & Inspiring through YouTube
Recruitment Strategies for New Mentality Groups
How to learn about mental health in schools
During open space, our special guests had the opportunity to host sessions related to their projects. Alisha Henson, a former Adult Ally for the New Mentality group in Pembroke and a current Ph.D. Candidate at McGill University, hosted a focus group exploring how self-compassion can influence mental health. Jennifer Lewington, a freelance reporter working on a piece about how schools can support mental health, also hosted a session. Jennifer spoke with youth about some of their personal experiences and collected some of their thoughts on how schools can support mental health.
Talent (Not Required) Show
After dinner and a break, we gathered back in our living room for the week, where we held a Talent (Not Required) Show. We watched amazing performances of singing, guitar, poetry, spoken word, hooping, magic tricks, and more, enjoying a raffle for cool swag between acts. The final performance was the Macarena – and our grand finale turned into an entire group rendition of the Macarena, followed by a dance party. After the show, we played cards, hung out, and chatted late into our final night.
Reflection and Closing – Day Four
On our final morning together, we reflected on the skills we had developed and connections that were deepened over the retreat. We acknowledged the challenges of participating in an intensive, deeply introspective retreat like Disable the Label. It can be scary to spend this many days looking deep inside. We learned a profound lesson of the power of sticking together, even when it gets really hard and we want to leave.
We closed with a circle and the question, ‘what do you want to take out of this, and what will you take home?’ Most people spoke, some stayed in reflection.
After a wonderful journey together we said our goodbyes – for now!
