Fostering Resilience in a Stressed Culture / The Myth of Normal: Depression, Anxiety and Addictions from a New Perspective

Evening Keynote  – June 6, 7pm – 9pm (Victoria Inn, 555 West Arthur Street, Thunder Bay)
Topic: Fostering Resilience in a Stressed Culture
Many more children than in the past are diagnosed these days with various learning and behaviour difficulties and many have problems learning from negative experiences. Schools are also having to deal with an increasing incidence of bullying which “zero tolerance” policies do not seem to be diminishing. Dr. Maté’s sessions, based on his best-selling books, will include generous time for interactive dialogue with participants and will focus on the causes and underlying dynamics of the challenges faced by today’s children—and therefore, by the adults tasked with nurturing and educating them. It will be shown that the most important feature of any approach to resilience needs to be the attachment relationship between children and the adults responsible for their care. unpleasant reactions and interactions. Sometimes we seek to avoid conflict by keeping each other at an emotional arm’s length, creating yet another impediment to genuine connection.

Full day workshop – June 7, 9am – 3pm (Thunder Bay Community Auditorium, 1 Paul Shaffer Drive, Thunder Bay)
Topic: The Myth of Normal: Depression, Anxiety and Addictions from a New Perspective
For all our progress in understanding and treating mental illness, it continues to be a subject of misapprehension, prejudice and stigmatization. The reason for that may be not its strangeness but its familiarity. Very few individuals or families are not touched by at least some aspects of mental dysfunction, some periods of the discouragement, disconnect or anxiety that, on a deeper and more chronic level, characterizes the mind state of the mentally ill. And beyond individual experience or predisposition, many factors in this stress and confused culture conduce to mental malfunction on a broad social scale. This talk will explore the causes and “normality” of depression, anxiety and addictions in our society.