January Counsellor Newsletter
 
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SUPPORTING COUNSELLORS
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Welcome back and hello 2023!  We would like to welcome Christina Pelletier to the team.  Many of you know Christina as a district psychologist and VP at Rockheights.  We hope to see you on January 18 at our in person counsellor collaboration and hope you are re-energized from the break.  Let's all remember to take care of yourselves going forward as we take care of our students and families.
 Our theme for this year is "Healthy Relationships through a Trauma Sensitive Lens."  

Our Counsellor meetings offer an opportunity for connection, professional development, and consult and collaboration around individual students and work.  We value this time to connect and have received your feedback about which resources and community agencies you would like to hear more from.  
Counsellor Meetings for 2023

Wednesday, January 18
1-3 pm In Person

Location: Tolmie Boardroom
Representatives from the Intercultural Association (ICA)  and The Vancouver Island Counselling Centre for Immigrants and Refugees (VICCIR) will lead a conversation in culturally responsive counselling practices. Please bring questions and case examples. 

Wednesday, March 1
1-3 pm Virtual

Link will be sent out.

Thursday, April 13
9-11 am In Person

Location:  Tolmie Boardroom

Tuesday, May 30
1-3 pm Virtual

Link will be sent out.
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BC School Counsellors Association Comprehensive School 
Counselling Model

Updated in 2021.  The Executive of the BCSCA recognized the need for an updated resource that would serve to inform school counselling roles and practices within the province, and which could serve as a quick reference guide to many of the resources that are regularly used by school counsellors.
Note:  School districts in BC hold the final decision regarding standards and practices of counselling in schools.

SELF-CARE

The Power, Benefits, and Simplicity of a Walk


"Above all, do not lose your desire to walk. Every day I walk myself into a state of well-being and walk away from every illness. I have walked myself into my best thoughts, and I know of no thought so burdensome that one cannot walk away from it."
- Søren Kierkegaard -
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There is a tremendous body of research to support the mental and physical benefits of walking. Improved creativity, improved cardio health, improved memory retention, and many more benefits have all been found in recent, peer-reviewed research. (Sahil Bloom, 2022)

The Walk


There are four types of walks to consider implementing in your routines:

Active Walks: Active walks are 30-60 minutes and are done at a brisk pace with optional technology. I will often spend my active walks listening to an audiobook or podcast, or thinking about something specific that I want to work through (a problem, writing idea, etc.). Active walks are a light cardio workout and a moderate cognitive workout.

Passive "Tech-Free" Walks: Passive walks are "atelic" activities (meaning they are done with no goal in mind). These walks are 30-60 minutes and are done at a slow, leisurely pace with no technology. The mind should be free to wander. Allow your ideas to mingle. I'd suggest bringing a little pocket notebook to log anything interesting that comes into your head (it will happen!).
Morning Sunlight Walks: You don't need a fancy morning routine—just go for a 15-20 minute walk. The sunlight, movement, and fresh air have a direct positive impact on your mood, circadian rhythm, metabolism, digestion, and more. Ideally this is a tech-free walk (leave the phone at home and let your mind wander).

Break Walks: As shown in the NYT article above, short walk breaks have a positive impact on your overall wellness. Take a 5-10 minute walk in between meetings, after a meal, or before an important presentation to harness the power.
RESOURCES FOR SUBSTANCE USE AND HARM REDUCTION
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Parents Like Us: The Unofficial Guide to Parenting a Young Person with a Substance Use Disorder (link)

A helpful resource for parents who are dealing with this challenge.  

Safety First: Real Drug Education for Teens (link in title)

Safety First: Real Drug Education for Teens is the nation’s first harm reduction-based drug education curriculum for high school students.

The free curriculum consists of 15 lessons that can be completed in a 45- to 50-minute class period. 
    The Safety First curriculum:
  • Easily integrates into Google Classroom
  • Allows for asynchronous student learning
  • Contains learning activities that can be completed collaboratively as a class, at home individually, or with a family member, parent or household member
  • Encourages media and health literacy skills, relying on vetted learning techniques such as the CRAAP test
  • Maintains a trauma-informed approach.


The ABCs of Youth Substance Use (link in title)

A wealth of recommended resources for substance use education K-12 are available on this page.  Autonomy, Belonging and Competencies are important protective factors that promote youth wellbeing and positive mental health. The ABCs increase resilience and prevent, delay and reduce substance-related harms. 
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HIGHLIGHTED RESOURCES
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Quick Reference Food Security Guide for Families (link in title)

We know the number of families that are experiencing food insecurity continues to grow.  This is a resource for you to offer parents when the need is recognized.  

 

 

 

Parent Resource: Safer Schools Raising Digitally Responsible Youth 
(link in title)

Technology is here to stay, whether we like it or not. The digital reputation of today's students, or how they choose to represent themselves online, is being evaluated and assessed by future employers or admissions departments. The goal of this parent guide is to help introduce the major social media platforms, video games, and relevant trends that are either being used already or have the potential to be used by our children.
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Stigma Free Society Student Mental Health Toolkit

An engaging online website for promoting mental wellness education to youth while providing resources for educators, school counsellors, and parents/guardians.

 

 

 

Help for the Hard Times

Workshops for families and caregivers whose child or youth has been a patient in a psychiatric unit or had an ER visit due to their mental health.

Help for the Hard Times workshops are hosted online and facilitated by parents with lived experience. 

There is no cost to families. Registration is required.
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Y Mind Groups
for Teens (13-18) 

We are pleased to offer the Y Mind Groups for teens (13-18) on an ongoing basis under provincial funding in 2023. This winter and spring, we will be offering our Victoria-based groups at the Y Downtown.

The YMCA-YWCA Y Mind Groups are a free, weekly psychoeducational support group for teens 13-18 experiencing stress, worries and anxiety. Participants learn healthy coping skills through mindfulness and the ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) process to manage their anxiety, connect with other young people and receive support all in a safe and supportive community environment. The program is designed to provide tools and support to folks who experience mild to moderate anxiety and is funded by the Ministry of Health as an early intervention program. During the program they get a Y membership and if they attend all sessions a two-month extension.

Programming is supervised by two trained facilitators (one or both are clinical counsellors) and is available to young adults and teens who experience mild-to-moderate anxiety. No referral is necessary for participation, however interested participants must register in advance for an online information session which is followed up with an intake meeting with one of the group facilitators.

Y Mind Teen Upcoming program information 

All in person programs will be located at the Downtown Victoria YMCA-YWCA 851 Broughton St.

Information & Intake Sessions:
Wednesday February 1st and 8th, 2023
5:30-6:15pm (Online)

Program Dates:
March 1 – April 12th, 2023
Weekly on Wednesdays
6:00-7:30pm (In person)

Online via Zoom (offered through partner and other Y sites across BC) Dates TBD based on interest

For more information email Lana at
lplillott@vancouverislandy.ca
* Please note your interest in an online group.

Online registration for information/intake sessions is available here: 
YMCA-YWCA of Vancouver Island Online Services 
RESOURCES AND ARTICLES

JANUARY SNAPSHOT TOPIC: MENTAL HEALTH

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Child Mind Institute:  Help for Cutting and Self-Injury 

The impulse a teenager feels to harm herself is almost always triggered by a specific event in her life. The most common 'trigger' for cutting is feeling rejected: by a boyfriend/ girlfriend, close friends, or by a general feeling of being left out or criticized. What You'll Learn - Why do young people cut or hurt themselves? - What are signs of self-injury? - How can you help someone who is injuring themselves?
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Professional development

Protective Factors for Student Mental Health and Well-being: Learnings from the YDI and Kids & Covid Project

Join the BC Children’s Kelty Mental Health Resource Centre and School Health Promotion team for a free webinar series for professionals working to promote mental health in school communities. In this webinar, Dr. Hasina Samji, Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University and a Senior Scientist in Population Mental Wellbeing at the BC Centre for Disease Control, will discuss mental health and well being in BC from recent findings from the Youth Development Instrument (YDI) and the Kids and COVID project – with a focus on protective factors and recommendations for improving mental health and well-being. The BC Children’s team will also discuss resources available to support the well-being of students in school communities.
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Dr. Ross Greene Collaborative and Proactive Solutions (CPS)

In this live webinar, Dr. Greene provides an overview of the Collaborative & Proactive Solutions (CPS) model, along with more advanced coverage of the nuances of assessment and solving problems collaboratively. You can participate in either or both days.
On the first day, Dr. Greene provides a general overview of the CPS model, including key themes, use of the Assessment of Lagging Skills and Unsolved Problems, and Plan B. On the second day he dives more deeply into the technicalities and nuances of various facets of the model, with extensive use of video examples and ample time for questions and discussion. Registration LINK.
Pathways   Partnerships
Lindsay Johnson, Kevin Blecic, and Bonnie Alexander are always eager to collaborate and work together to connect students to opportunities. Please reach out with requests and ideas you may have for a classroom, school, or individual student.  
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MEET YOUR TEAM
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District Mental Health Team

Our work focusses on supporting schools and families with students who present with complex profiles that may include emotional, behavioural, mental health, and substance use concerns. We collaborate with district levelled teams and school teams for the purpose of complex problem solving and integrating supports.  This also includes collaboration with community agencies (i.e Discovery, CYMH, Police) to develop consistent interventions to offer increased wrap around support to the students and families that we serve.  Professional learning opportunities, snapshots, and newsletters are created to promote ongoing education and resource sharing with colleagues, students, and families.  Additional work includes VTRA (Violent Threat Risk Assessment) and CIRT (Critical Incident Response Team) response when these needs arise in our school community.  

District Counselling Team Contact Info:

Middle District Counsellor:                         Monique Moore                     mmoore@sd61.bc.ca               
Elementary District Counsellor:                 
Maureen von Tigerstrom       mvontigerstrom@sd61.bc.ca
Youth & Family District Counsellor:         
 Jen Aston                              jaston@sd61.bc.ca  

Indigenous District Counsellors 
Secondary                                                     
Joanne Mitchell                     jomitchell@sd61.bc.ca
Middle                                                            
David Davidson                     ddavidson@sd61.bc.ca
Elementary                                                  
 Pam Russ                              pruss@sd61.bc.ca                             

Additional Members of the District Mental Health Team:

District Vice Principal:                              Christina Pelletier                  cpelletier@sd61.bc.ca
Deputy Superintendent:                          
Harold Caldwell                      hcaldwell@sd61.bc.ca
Mental Health Resource Coordinator:   
Marnice Jones                        mjones@sd61.bc.ca