Mental Health & Wellness Resources

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Stress Strategies:  A free online tool by the Psychology Foundation of Canada that gives practical ways to cope with stress.

BC Lawyer Assistance Program: Stress Management 

7 science-based strategies to cope with coronavirus anxiety from Jelana Kecmanovic, Adjunct Professor of Psychology, Georgetown University

The Ontario Bar Association has a host of  wellness resources, including a 30-day fitness challenge, quick tips, and a CPD series.

SADNESS VS. DEPRESSION - a video

ENJOY THE BENEFITS OF EXERCISE - a video

Learn how you can create your own happiness

Want more resources?  

Click here

Alcoholics Anonymous is an international fellowship of men and women who think they have a drinking problem. It is nonprofessional, self-supporting, multiracial, apolitical, and available almost everywhere. There are no age or education requirements. Membership is open to anyone who wants to do something about his or her drinking problem.  

American Bar Association: Alcohol Use Disorders - signs & symptoms.

ABA Podcast: Substance Abuse and Mental Illness in the Legal Profession.

Mindfulness Without Borders (MWB) is a leading provider of best practices and evidenced-based programs on secular mindfulness and social-emotional intelligence to youth, educators, health and corporate professionals in communities around the world.  MWB offers in-person and on-line workshops, produce a fantastic blog, and have lots of resources on their website.

MUSE, a Personal Meditation Assistant from Toronto's Interaxon, is wearable tech at its best!   It's a headband that, when paired with their app, gives you feedback about your meditation in real time by translating your brain signals into the sounds of weather.

Mental health means striking a balance in all aspects of your life: social, physical, spiritual, economic and mental. Reaching a balance is a learning process. At times, you may tip the balance too much in one direction and have to find your footing again. Your personal balance will be unique, and your challenge will be to stay mentally healthy by keeping that balance. 

Click here for information and suggestions from the Canadian Mental Health Association to help you keep your balance. 

Governments are beginning to loosen restrictions and some businesses are firing up their engines again. If you are leading one of these operations, you will be required to implement many new protocols to protect the physical and psychological safety of staff, both as a group and as individuals.

The work 2.0 reboot will become the new normal for workplaces, and while it may spur many good things - renewed energy for employees who have felt drained by isolation, innovation, enhanced processes and procedures - it will also require you to be acutely aware of employees’ needs and the way you can support, and ideally, positively impact their mental health as they move through this new phase of the crisis.

To do this successfully, it is important to have plans in place that reduce mental harm and promote mental health and wellness.

WORK 2.0 REBOOT: SUPPORTING EMPLOYEES’ MENTAL HEALTH

 Coronavirus has many people anxious about their personal safety and a number of people are worried about their safety at work as well as the possibility of having to miss work due to sickness. Education is a big part of managing people’s anxiety.  Blog post  and video by My Workplace Health. 

Clear, caring messages from all levels of leadership is helpful in reducing fear and uncertainty in the workplace in the face of public health concerns. Learn the best ways to effectively communicate about coronavirus in the workplace by clicking here.

Workplace Strategies for Mental Health: Dealing with Fear and Anxiety:  Daily video tips on taking care of your mental health during the pandemic 

Below are some quick tips on leading through today's changing environment:

Leading from a distance: Video

Protecting your team's wellbeing: Video

Leading Through Change: Lessons in Inclusion: Article

Workplace Strategies for Mental Health: Plan for Resilience: PDF

5 Tips for Remote Working (from the OBA): Article

Warning signs: Why it’s important for lawyers and firms to be proactive about mental health - PracticePRO

Understanding mental health in the legal profession - PracticePRO

The Employer’s COVID-19 Return to the Workplace Playbook in Canada  - Osler

Understanding mental health and mental illness and their impacts in the workplace - Morneau Shepell 

Medcan offers employee health solutions bridge the gap between your benefits plan and the health needs of your employees.  Plus, they have some amazing resources for you and your family.  

The Great-West Life Centre for Mental Health in the Workplace is a leading source of free, practical tools and resources designed to help Canadian employers with the prevention, intervention and management of workplace mental health issues. All tools and resources are available in English and French to anyone, anywhere, at no cost.

The HSJCCs were established in response to a recognized need to coordinate resources and services, and plan more effectively for people who are in conflict with the law. Priority consideration is for people with a serious mental illness, developmental disability, acquired brain injury, drug and alcohol addiction, and/or fetal alcohol syndrome. 

The committees were generated as a cooperative effort between the Ministries of the Attorney General, Community and Social Services, Children and Youth Services, Health and Long-Term Care, and Community Safety and Correctional Services.

The two primary areas of emphasis for the committees are:

1. To provide a planning table to bring together service providers to find solutions to the problem of the criminalization of people with the defined unique needs, and;
2. To develop a model of shared responsibility and accountability in dealing with this group of individuals at points of intersection with the justice system.

Work planning and reporting helps HSJCCs from across the province plan their activities for the year. Reporting ensures there is accountability across the network and is a great way to highlight the accomplishments of the HSJCC Network.

Regional and Local HSJCCs develop their work plan based on a standardized reporting template.  

The HSJCCs provide reports on the following:

Mental Health Courts in Ontario;

Older Adults and the Justice System;

Housing & Justice Reform; and

Police-Hospital Transitions Frameworks

Regional committees were established to coordinate communication and service integration planning between health, criminal justice, and developmental service organizations within specific regions. Local committees provide input to these regional groups. The Provincial Committee, consisting of regional chairs and Ministry representatives, has been developed as a provincial planning body. 

On March 30, 2020, the Boards of Directors of the Conference of Chief Justices and Conference of State Court Administrators took action to establish a new Task Force to assist state courts in their efforts to more effectively respond to the needs of court-involved individuals with serious mental illness.

The Task Force will build upon the previous work of the NCSC National Advisory Committee  supported by funding from the State Justice Institute. Their work and future plans are described in the transition report, The Future is Now: Decriminalization of Mental Illness.

In order to address mental health needs in your community, certain court and community responses must be developed early on. The best practices recommended on this website build the foundation for improving the court and community responses to mental health and co-occurring disorders. 

This website begins with leading change resources specifically designed for judges.  Every community will be at a different place with each of these practices. As you look through the various recommendations, consider your own community and the best way to use these tools to build a structure of support for mental health issues within it. 

Opening with a series of statements on racial justice from six state supreme court chief justices, the 2020 edition of Trends In State Courts provides timely and diverse stories including an article on how collaborative efforts among justice, mental-health, and public-health systems are essential to respond to individuals who frequently cycle through systems, State Courts’ Responsibility to Convene, Collaborate and Identify Individuals Across Systems. 

The National Advisory Committee produced several informative resources to inform and educate the judiciary concerning mental health and the courts to include the Leading Change guide and the Coordinated Court and Community Responses website.

The Leading Change Guide for judges and court leaders is intended for court professionals who want to create change in how mental health needs are addressed in their communities but aren't sure how to get started. It lays out the steps for beginning the movement toward change in the court and community's response to mental health and co-occurring disorders—from inviting stakeholders to the first meeting to sustaining the initial momentum for long-term progress. It includes a list of potential stakeholders, action step checklists, sample meeting agendas, assessment questions.