BCNU Mental Health Awareness Week Promotes Members' Psychological Well-being

World Mental Health Day is Oct. 10. To mark the event, BCNU is encouraging members to participate in a week-long outreach event highlighting the importance of gratitude and empathy for everyone's mental health and well-being. BCNU's Mental Health Awareness Week is an opportunity for members to continue calling attention to mental injury and illness and work to decrease associated stigmas.

"Making Mental Health & Well-Being for All a Global Priority" is the World Health Organization's theme for World Mental Health Day 2022. The WHO reports that anxiety and depressive disorders increased by 25 percent during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. And while the pandemic continues to take its toll on our mental health, the ability to reconnect through World Mental Health Day provides us with an opportunity to re-kindle our efforts to protect and improve mental health.

WorkSafeBC reports an increase in mental health disorder claims across all jobs over the past several years, and indicates that nursing is one of top professions seeking mental health claims. BCNU also hears from our members and we know mental health issues are on the rise. The union is committed to working with employers, provincial agencies, and policy makers to improve workplace safety. We will continue to advocate for environmental and system-level change like the implementation of the Canadian Standard of Psychological Health and Safety at Work. And like WHO, BCNU strives to increase awareness about preventive mental health interventions and advocate for increased mental health supports for our members.

This week, participate in the conversation on gratitude and empathy and help promote mental health.

JOIN our social media conversation on Facebook.

Practising gratitude is associated with improved mental, physical, and social health. It also helps us achieve our goals and feel more optimistic. Deepak Chopra said, "gratitude is an immensely powerful force that we can use to expand our happiness, create loving relationships, and even improve our health."

Between Oct. 10 and 16, share your gratitude with a quote, photo, or video message. It can be about a natural wonder, good meal, piece of music, your work, your health, a child's smile, a pet's loyalty, or the view outside your window. Be sure to include the hashtags #WorldMentalHealthDay, #WMHD2022 and #BCNursesUnion in your post.

REGISTER for Gratitude and Grace, our live lunch-hour webinar taking place on Oct. 12 from 12:00 to 13:00.

Somatic educators Anita Chari and Angelica Singh from Embodying Your Practice (EYP) will help us explore the ways that practicing gratitude can connect us to a sense of wholeness and belonging. We'll also learn why it can be challenging to practise gratitude in the face of structural violence, social injustice, stigma and discrimination. Be sure to register for Gratitude and Grace today!

LEARN more about BCNU's series of EYP offerings available this fall through the new BCNU Learning Centre, including the on-demand course Foundations of Embodying Your Practice and additional webinars.

CHECK OUT mental health resources on the BCNU website and learn more about empathy and gratitude on the Canadian Mental Health Association website.