*Trigger warning: Mildly graphic images and discussion of drug use ahead Before my work-study at U of T’s Health & Wellness department, I had not heard of naloxone training or harm reduction. Harm reduction, in simple terms, refers to policies,…
Author: Andrea
Everything You Need to Know About the Health & Wellness Peer Support Service
U of T has so many support services for students that it can be overwhelming to figure out what is what. From peer supporters to peer mentors to peer advisors, how many type of peers can you have? I had…
“Love My Body But I Wanna Be Thin?” A Difficult Conversation
Content warning: discussion of eating disorders and disordered eating. This is one account of disordered eating, everyone’s experience is unique and individual. Recovery looks different for everyone and the content provided is intended to give another perspective to the ongoing…
The Uphill Joy of Learning a New Language #joyatuoft
Learning languages excited me more than most things. I jump right in but then give up just as quickly when I try to say a sentence in that new language and suddenly forget everything I learned. I come from a…
Top 10 Movies that get Mental Health Right
If it’s not our personal experiences that we learn from, it’s often what we see on a screen that provides us with new perspectives. Films pertaining to mental health often capture just the surface of what mental health encompasses: It’s…
I Didn’t Exercise for a Whole Semester – Here’s What I Learned
I was always an active person. From competitive gymnastics to recreational sports in school to dancing as a hobby, I always found myself doing some sort of physical activity. Quarantine gave me the chance to branch out in fitness; for…
U of T is Listening: the Launch of a New Mental Health Website
It is 2017, I am in my final year of high school and the University of Toronto is my first choice on my university application. I had extended family rooting for the school and encouraging me to work hard, “It’s…
All About Mindset: How Productivity Decreases Productivity
How funny – one moment you’re going to bed at dawn after a night of idly browsing the internet then in another you discover you have a term test, two papers, and the rest of exams following shortly. This has…
I Tried U of T’s Virtual Fitness Classes
It turns out that U of T is offering virtual fitness classes amid the state of the pandemic. It also turns out that they’ve been offering this for a while and I just didn’t know about it. When I talked…
Ways to Unplug in a Time Where You Always Have To Stay Plugged
We are in the middle of uncertain times and we’re learning to adapt to a ‘new normal’. But, you know this already. You’ve probably heard it at least once this week. Amid the pandemic, we know that we are in…