Audrey Sum / Staff reporter
With the semester now in full swing where balancing personal life and academic performance can affect a student’s wellbeing, it’s important that everyone prioritize mental health as much as physical health.
According to the Canadian Mental Health Organization, about one in seven people in BC will experience a mental illness at some point. Many people have mixed feelings about reaching out for support as they fear getting blamed for their experience and worry about what others think. However, taking action for your mental wellness and getting a safe space to talk to someone can be easily accessed from the touch of your phone screen.
Foundry BC offers a web-based platform and mobile app that allows young people to have free mental health care over phone, video, or online chat clinics for ages 12 to 24. Some services include virtual counseling, peer group support, and a library of resources are available.
Foundry is a BC-based organization with a network made up of community-based health and social service centers, online tools and resources that are accessible for students to improve their mental health. They strive to bring health and social services together in one place for young people to find care, connection, and support needed.
Moreover, Foundry’s collaboration system known as Integrated youth services (IYS) allows youth to not have to keep getting referrals from health care professionals to repeat their story over again.
Students can feel assured going to the same place and service workers who know them to work together through a different approach with their wellness services that allows visiting a physical location or virtually through the app.
However, it doesn’t only apply to youth going through a difficult time. The website provides support for families, friends, and working professionals to understand mental health better and be capable for leading meaningful conversations.
While their tools and articles on various topics that cover mental health, substance use, and balancing personal life and academics allows us to build a better relationship with ourselves to take care of our mental health.