School Board Hears From Mental Health Facilitator

The Portage la Prairie school board heard from the Divisional Mental Health Facilitator at their recent meeting.

Dana Geisel has been in the position for almost a full school year now and says the students really have no issue opening up when it comes to their mental health.

"Kids are so open, it never ceases to amaze me at how brave kids are when they're talking to me. I think some of it is that they rarely get the opportunity to talk about things like feelings, so kids when they're learning math or social studies are worried about getting the wrong answer, but when they talk with me they're the experts on what is going on in their life. They're usually excited to share with me because they know they've got the answers."

The division recently partnered with CMHA's Central Region Executive Director Jordan Friesen to kick off Mental Health Awareness Week.

"It's the 66th annual mental health week and when I approached Jordan Friesen and asked if he would be willing to partner with me on this and he was all in right from the beginning. Bringing together a community organization with the school has never been done here in Portage, and between working with Jordan and his staff we put together a fantastic event for students. He was able to bring in resources that I wouldn't have been able to access which was great."

She says it's important to talk about the importance of mental health with students at all ages, which is something they've been doing.

"Everyone deals with mental health wellness. I'll talk to adults and they say when you're a kid it's the best time of your life, but when you say that to kids they feel that's not the case. So something like this really connected with kids because they see the struggles they face every day."

She adds all the feedback from kids was positive, and they really enjoyed the day learning about different tools, being together with friends, and meeting other adults in the community who are helpers.