From the time I was a young girl, I was in love with children of all ages - including babies. Naturally, my first job was babysitting. I loved everything about kids and I always wanted to be a mom! I actually wanted 6 boys (I know, crazy right?)
While pursuing my university education, I worked in daycares. It was the only summer or part-time job I ever had during my 5 years of university.
After graduation, I immediately started working in the education system. My time in Saskatchewan allowed me to work with a diverse range of needs, including medical, behavioural, hearing, visually impaired and so on. From there, we moved to Alberta, and I continued working in the same field.
Throughout these 20 years, I noticed an increase in stress, anxiety, worries, and fears, and a decrease in self-esteem and self-awareness - this was before the pandemic. At that time, very little formal education addressed these issues. We seemed to teach children about everything; except themselves. Because I too had lived with many of these issues most of my life, I became very empathetic towards their needs. This is when I knew I had to do everything I could to provide strategies for kids, teachers, parents, and caregivers to help with mental and emotional well-being!
I started my journey by becoming certified as a child meditation facilitator and continued to educate myself in the health and wellness field. I began teaching “Empowerment classes” both in and out of the education system to children and youth, meditation classes for adults, stress workshops in the corporate world. I spoke at conferences for teachers and support staff. The last program I developed was a sport and mental preparation course, which I have taught in private sessions, small groups, and teams - ranging from novice to elite competitors.
Throughout this time, I began thinking about writing a book with a focus on this much-needed area. After teaching these classes for over 15 years and seeing how impactful the strategies and exercises were, I knew I needed to reach a larger audience. This is how Empowering our Future came to life! I put everything I had learned and taught into a book!
With mental health disorders on the rise within the younger generation, how do we help children and youth cope with worries, fears, and anxieties? “Empowering our Future,” is a guide to strategies and techniques for parents, teachers, caregivers, and coaches to help children thrive in today’s world. The book provides exercises, activities, worksheets, and meditations to help assist with:
- Managing stress and anxiety, both the mental and physical symptoms
- Providing meditations to help let go of fears and transition into a peaceful night’s sleep
- Boosting self-esteem and self-awareness
- Helping children understand their emotions and communicate them in a healthy way
- Preparing athletes and teams to be mentally strong so their probability for success increases
I will continue to be an advocate for children’s mental health. I believe that it’s so important that our youth are educated about their mind and heart. We must all do whatever we can to build resilient youth. After all, they are our future!!
Until next time…