Open Arms

10/10/2019

It’s okay to not be okay. Use today as an opportunity to check in with a friend. And sign a pledge to start that conversation now. Together we can make a difference.

05/02/2019

Open Arms is once again proud to support the Post Secondary Games hosted this year at Western University. We send our best wishes to all athletes and hope that everyone has a healthy, safe and fun weekend!

PSG: UNLEASHED thanks all of its sponsors for their generous support! 💜

02/04/2019

01.22.2019 // Bobbi Shewchuk.
Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario.

Photo's from the Open Arms event "How to Support a Friend - with Sabrina Benaim" at Queen's University.

Open Arms co-hosted a speaker panel to help continue the dialogue around mental health awareness. The topic for the night focused around friends helping friends. The night started with a panel discussion and finished with the keynote speaker of the night, Sabrina Benaim, who brought her own perspective on the importance of friends as a support network. We have also shared the live stream of the event on our page for anyone to check out!

01/30/2019

A great message from Strathcona-Tweedsmuir School on this day. For more information on a conversation, please visit our website!

STS recognizes that mental health is a prevalent topic among today's youth. Through initiatives such as "Open Arms Week", we are working together to educate and eliminate the stigma of mental health by encouraging our students to take the pledge to start a conversation. On day, we remind our community to use the START acronym to facilitate these important conversations:

"S" - Start by checking in and reaching out and allow your peers to
"T" - Talk without interruption
"A" - Acknowledge the struggles they are facing
"R" - Reassure your peer of your support for them and that they are not alone
"T" - take the next steps by seeking additional support and resources.

07/21/2018

Open Arms - One Year Later

Last July, our team began a journey with one goal; to start a conversation. A year later, we couldn’t be more proud of the courage we have seen across Canada. We knew this would not be an easy conversation, and yet, across Canada we have seen high school and University students stand up to national stigma. We have stood up together by starting conversations, asking how our families and friends are doing and being more aware of our own well-beings.

Our journey has been through ups and downs this year but through it all, we have been humbled by the incredible support we have witnessed at our events. From our first annual 5 Days 5 Steps event in March to our partnership with the Ismaili Community to our University specific updates, we are so proud to be a small part of this nationwide movement. We want to take the opportunity to thank those who supported us and for you to know that we are always here.

Looking to the future, here at Open Arms we are excited for a event-filled calendar in front of us. We have some very exciting announcements coming very soon and are excited to share new and awesome ways to start conversations!

For now, thank you. And remember, a conversation can change a life.

Scott and Myles

Co-Founders and Executive Directors

03/16/2018

Welcome to Day 5 of 5 Days. 5 Steps.! Its been an amazing week of real change. On Day 5, we hear from Queens University students as we focus on the most important step to continuing a conversation - Taking the Next Steps. conversations are conversations that don't have an ending, these are conversations that continue and can always be started again. Thank you for your support this week, together we have and will continue to create real change. Even though we have seen the end of this week, the conversations surrounding mental health continue each and everyday.

Please consider signing the pledge after learning our steps to a conversation this week and change a life. Start a conversation, share your stories and together, we can bring an end to the stigma surrounding mental health. Visit our website at open-arms.ca and make a difference today.

03/16/2018

For Days 3 and 4 of and 5 Days. 5 Steps., we focus on answering and reassuring others in a conversation. Sharing and reminding others that help is available and that you are always available for a conversation can make a real difference.

Learn more about signing a pledge to a conversation and our tips on having a conversation at our website; open-arms.ca

03/13/2018

Welcome to Day 2 of ! Today, we focus on Talking Uninterrupted and ensuring that your full attention is on the conversation. This step is all about creating a safe environment and sharing whats really going on in our lives.

Often times, our lives feel too busy to sit, think and reflect on how ourselves and others around us are doing. Today, on March 13th, take a minute, pause your hectic schedule and think about others around you. Over dinner tonight, ask a question, share a personal story and let someone know that you'll always be there for them. Review our steps to a conversation or create your own and you could change a life today. By creating a confidential and safe environment, we are more willing to tell those stories, share our feelings and trust ourselves and our friends. Thats what Step 2 of is all about.

Sign the pledge today at open-arms.ca and pledge to yourself and others that you will always be ready and willing to have a conversation.

03/12/2018

Day 1 of 5 Days. 5 Step. and is here! Today we focus on the first step to a conversation; Starting a conversation. To explain more about the first step of and what a conversation means to them, here are students from Strathcona Tweedsmuir School near Calgary, AB!