Mary Golem

The Post
Date Published: Thursday, February 2, 2012

View printable version

A Chesley teenager and her sister will be appearing on CTV's morning news show, Canada AM, Wednesday.

Kathryn Loucks and her older sister Bronwyn of Toronto will be interviewed about their efforts to create awareness regarding mental health issues among youth.

"I'm creating awareness because I know what the stigma and the isolation is like," Kathryn Loucks said, recalling her own personal battle with depression in 2010. "I'm trying to make something positive out of it," the grade 12 student at the Chesley District High School said. Before Kathryn, her sister Bronwyn was involved in similiar mental health awareness efforts.

Wanting to learn more about her own condition, the more she researched depression, the more she learned about mental health issues facing teenagers. For example, in 1980, one teen in 10 was likely to experience symptoms of a mental illness. Now it's one in four, she said.

"I wondered 'why isn't our school doing anything?' and then I started doing something," she said, as she shared her long list of accomplishments.

In September, she applied and was chosen to be one of eight students on the Ontario Youth Action Committee for Childrens' Mental Health Ontario. She helped create a presentation for the CMHO's annual general meeting, speaking to 500 mental health professionals on the value in youth partnership as the frontline for advocates when it comes to mental health awareness. She's also a youth representative on Keystone's Strategic Planning and Community Relations Committee (sister Bronwyn was also part of Keystone), was chosen to be part of the Bluewater District School Board's staff and student wellness committee as it recently

helped to develop the board's new strategic plan and in the spring, will be part of the board's mental health forum. She also has several other invitations lined up to speak to students, teachers and community groups about youth mental health.

Just recently, Loucks was in Toronto as a student advisor to The Jack Project, a youth suicide prevention program initiated by Eric Windeler, whose son Jack took his own life while at university. Several local high schools are part of a pilot project this year and Loucks has been asked to speak to students at those schools in April. She was also part of a film made about the project.

But that's not all. Earlier this school year, Loucks created a "Disable

the Label" advocacy group of 12 students at Chesley District High School and launched her own awareness website and poster campaign for Mental Health Awareness Week at CDHS in October -with no money. Tapping into resources from the Canadian Institute of Mental Health and other sources, as part of the school's morning announcements each day, she told students something about a mental health disorder.

"That just got the conversation started about mental health. With such a small school of 300 students, I think there really is an opportunity for me to make change," she said. "That's the good thing about a small school. I can target everyone."

She admits she was both pleased and surprised at the response. Other students wanted to talk about their own issues or ask questions.

"It really opened my eyes," she said. "I didn't really realize how many students just like me were suffering."

She went on-line and ordered green stress balls, in the shape of a human brain, with the wording "Disable the Label."

Just recently, she learned she will be receiving a $5,000 'Dare to Dream' grant, another $1,000 through the 'Speak Up' program and $500 each from Bruce Power and P&H Foods.

With the money, Loucks and her advocacy group at CDHS hope to assemble 300 stress packages, one for every student at the Chesley District High School. Each package will include a green "Disable the Label" stress ball and bracelet, (green is the colour for children's mental health) along with mental health resource materials about how to recognize symptoms, how to help and who to call, as well as donated pens, granola bars, T-shirts, and a one-day pass to the local gym. "Exercise is a good way to relieve stress and this would also help our local gym."

The original plan was to distribute the packages right before exams, but that has since been delayed until later in second semester at the school.

"What is really neat is that CDHS is a small school so we can target everyone," she said, adding she wants her fellow students to know what the signs and symptoms are and how to help their friends if they're suffering. Doing so, may prevent a potential suicide," Loucks said.

For suicide prevention month in February, Loucks has organized a visual arts, music, poetry and video editing competition for CDHS students. Whoever best expresses something about mental health or suicide prevention wins an IPad, along with other prizes.

"I'm trying to get stress to go away, but I'm pretty stressed out from doing all of this. My life is crazy busy but it's exciting too."

"I just want to reach out and help," she added. "Combatting the stigma is the biggest thing .... and it makes a big difference in terms of outcome."