Visions Journal

PDF | EPUB | Vol. 15, No. 3 (2020)

Health inequities are differences in the way people access health care and support—differences that come from stigma and discrimination in systems and from people who are supposed to provide care. These inequities marginalize young people, excluding them from peers, health services, and their broader communities. In this issue of Visions, you will see many diverse experiences of inequity and marginalization. You will hear from youth who lived in foster care until they aged out of the care system and had to find a way to support themselves. Indigenous youth who experience racism. Transgender youth who navigated transitioning through prejudice and misunderstanding, even from their own family and friends. Youth involved in the criminal justice system who needed the right supports to break away from cycles of substance use. Youth living on the street trying to cope with the opioid overdose crisis. Youth in racialized communities that don’t talk openly about mental health, leaving people isolated and bullied. What all of these different experiences have in common is the need to look at an individual as a whole person and see the intersecting factors that impact health and well-being. That includes reflecting on our own attitudes and assumptions about what youth need.

Background

• Editor's Message
  (Sarah Hamid-Balma)

• Stigma, Resilience and Health Care for Marginalized Youth
  (Elizabeth Saewyc)

Experiences and Perspectives

• Life in Transition: I always knew I wasn’t gay
  (Anden Lee)

• Crossing the Bridge: Improving mental well-being and fostering change for youth in the BC care system
  (Anita Shen)

• Mental Health Care and Youth: Barriers, supports and treating the whole person
  (Ryan)

• The Happiest Person You Know
  (Seren Friskie)

• Tips for Engaging Young People in Service Design and Delivery
  (Kristy Allen)

• I'm Riding This Thing, It's Not Riding Me: How I stopped using drugs and changed my life
  (Troy)

• Dance Therapy: Health through music and movement
  (Arjun Panesar)

• Light at the End of the Tunnel: My experience with gender identity and drugs
  (Cole H.)

Alternatives and Approaches

• heART space: A community art show about overdose
  (Marion Selfridge)

• The Value of Youth-Led Research and Engagement: Reflections from McCreary’s Youth Research Academy
  (Members of the fourth cohort of the Youth Research Academy)

• Bringing the Community Together: The South Asian Youth Mental Health (SAYMH) team
  (Kulpreet Singh)

• Mental Illness in my Community
  (Jasleen Sangha)

• You’re Stronger Than Your Problems
  (Ajeet Gill)

Resources