How Are You? No…really?

No, really… how are you?

If you’re like me, and many others, you answer this question several times a day. Your immediate response is probably “good” or “fine”, even if you aren’t. It’s an easy response that doesn’t require any explanation. But often we aren’t “good” or “fine” and expressing this can be difficult.

But do you know what? It’s okay if you are not “good” or “fine”. It’s okay to be struggling, and it’s okay to ask for help.

So, what do you do when you are not “fine”?

For those times in your life where you just don’t want to answer with the usual response, when you want to tell someone you aren’t “fine”, we are here to help and to listen. Together with Wellness Together Canada, Strongest Families Institute has been proudly offering our self-guided adult anxiety and depression program ICAN (Conquer Anxiety and Nervousness) with coaching support calls that you can ‘drop into’ as many times as you need support. Those who ‘drop-in’ find the calls helpful because of the Coach support and support from others in the group call who share similar challenges. It is all over the phone and so no one can see you, so it is a private, safe space.

Your  Strongest Families Institute’s Coach will help support and encourage you through our ICAN program. You will learn many skills to cope with and manage your anxiety and depression while helping to set goals that are manageable for you. We encourage sharing successes and challenges with anxiety and depression in a positive and safe environment free of judgement or stigma, especially anxiety related to COVID-19. Your Coach will help equip you with our skills that will best help your situation such as Deep Breathing, Positive Thinking, and various relaxation skills. With the help of your Coach, and our skills, slowly you will be able to conquer and face your anxieties gradually. We know life can have its challenges and can be overwhelming. These skills can help you relax, feel more confident, and reward successes.

Meet our client, Patrick

Each week our Coaches are touched by the ongoing support and success shared by Canadians who have benefited from ICAN coaching support calls.  Hearing how they motivate and encourage each other, listening as they share successes and challenges and working together to conquer anxiety brings a great sense of pride to us.

We want to introduce you to one of our group clients: Patrick. He is a twenty-something-year-old from the east coast who has been joining the group. Anxiety is new to him, and he didn’t know where he could go for help when he noticed he wasn’t feeling “fine”. That was until he heard someone speak on the radio about the Strongest Families Institute’s ICAN program.

Patrick shared his experience with us and wanted to share it with you:

“I AM KIND OF SPEECHLESS IN A WAY”

“THE GROUP CALLS ARE EXCELLENT”

Why is the group format such a great fit for clients?

The group support is great because it’s nice to not be alone in your struggles and to know that other people also struggle. The great part of the program is that it’s not just the struggles that are relatable, but the successes are too. Overall clients are saying that the things they learn are helpful, their stress is reduced, and they feel more confident.

Patrick explains how the program skills helped his confidence and his ability to cope with anxiety.

“OVERALL IT HELPS MY ANXIETY”

Reach out if you need help

So, take it from Patrick and us, it’s okay to not be “good”. It’s okay to not feel “fine”. There are better days ahead. Perhaps with the support of Strongest Families Institute, there will be more and more days where you can honestly answer that daunting question “How are you?” and your response will more and more frequently be “good”.

To register, visit: https://wellnesstogether.ca/ and sign up for the Strongest Families ICAN program.