DCO Discourse...
Episode Archive
Episode Archive
327 episodes of DCO Discourse... since the first episode, which aired on January 9th, 2019.
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Episode 39: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
August 20th, 2019 | Season 1 | 26 mins 22 secs
post traumatic stress disorder (ptsd)
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that is triggered by a terrifying event - either experiencing it or witnessing it. It can be an extremely debilitating condition that can occur after exposure to an event or ordeal in which grave physical harm occurred or was threatened. Symptoms may include flashbacks, nightmares and severe anxiety, as well as uncontrollable thoughts about the event. This is not a rare condition. PTSD can affect anyone who has had a traumatic experience and is among the most common mental health problems. According to the Canadian Mental Health Association, 1 in 10 people will suffer from PTSD and the number can be higher among specific groups of workers.
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Episode 38: Communicating with Youth Experiencing Depression or Suicidality
August 17th, 2019 | Season 1 | 21 mins 18 secs
communicating with youth experiencing depression or suicidality
Despite the increasing awareness around mental illness, it continues to be the single most disabling group of disorders. According to the World Health Organization, it affects youth, and specifically teen females, particularly hard. It is estimated that between 10 and 20% of Canadian youth are affected by a mental illness and approximately 5% of male youth and 12% of female youth have experienced a major depressive episode. This indicates that over 3 million teens in Canada today, between the ages of 12 and 19, are at risk of developing depression.
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Episode 37: Understanding Homelessness
August 9th, 2019 | Season 1 | 20 mins 29 secs
understanding homelessness
Housing is one of the most important factors for a healthy life. A good home is important for individuals and for overall population health. There is a growing number of Canadians who are precariously housed or homeless. Changes in the economy and in the housing market are adding to homelessness. The supply of affordable housing has not kept pace with the needs of the population. There has also been a decline in the amount of affordable rental housing in many cities. Combine that with declining incomes and a widespread reduction in social benefits for low-income Canadians, and you get a population that has to spend a greater percentage of its income on housing.
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Episode 36: First Nations or Aboriginal Cultural Sensitivity
August 1st, 2019 | Season 1 | 19 mins 47 secs
aboriginal perspectives, first nations or aboriginal cultural sensitivity, native cultural sensitivity
As help line call responders, you are asked with every contact, to provide care and sensitivity to the needs and conditions of the caller. That sensitivity involves being open and accepting of the person’s background, values and experiences and being awar
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Episode 35: Collecting or Hoarding
July 25th, 2019 | Season 1 | 18 mins 42 secs
collecting or hoarding
Hoarding is a complex behaviour that has been recognized as a distinct mental health disorder in the influential Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). People who hoard accumulate extreme, disorganized clutter in their homes and su
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Episode 34: Mental Health First Aid
July 18th, 2019 | Season 1 | 17 mins 37 secs
mental health first aid
Good mental health involves feeling good both physically and mentally; possessing the ability to enjoy life, and coping effectively with everyday challenges. ‘Easy enough’, you may say, but for many, this can seem like a lofty goal.
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Episode 33: A Focus on Anxiety
July 12th, 2019 | Season 1 | 33 mins 39 secs
anxiety
We all feel nervous, tense or worried at certain times and in certain situations. This anxiety is normal and can be a helpful feeling when it motivates us or warns us of danger. Anxiety is commonly experienced in high pressure situations, for example, pri
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Episode 32: DCO Conference 2019 Talk - Loneliness
July 5th, 2019 | Season 1 | 44 mins 6 secs
loneliness
DCO Conference 2019 Talk - Loneliness
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Episode 31: The Seeds of Self-Care
July 3rd, 2019 | Season 1 | 23 mins 58 secs
self-care
According to the 2008 Canadian Community Health Survey, 21.2% of males (2.8 million) and 23.4% of females (3.2 million) aged 15 or older reported that most days were quite a bit or extremely stressful. This is an alarming number of people who indicate str
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Episode 30: DCO Conference 2019 keynote - Finding the passion in what you do with Nina Spencer
June 25th, 2019 | Season 1 | 58 mins 54 secs
finding the passion in what you do with nina spencer
Motivational speaker, Nina Spencer discusses how to find the passion in what you do.
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Episode 29: Gambling is a Family Problem
June 23rd, 2019 | Season 1 | 21 mins 56 secs
gambling, the family impact of gambling
Our second part/episode on this topic looks at the family impact of problem Gambling. People gamble for a variety of reasons, and there are many vulnerability factors that can contribute to the development of a gambling problem. While most people do not e
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Episode 28: Is Gambling really a problem?
June 15th, 2019 | Season 1 | 30 mins 33 secs
gambling
Most Canadian adults gamble—and do so without experiencing problems. Many young people gamble as well. In a 2006 survey of Ontario students aged 15 to 17 years, it was found that one in three youth (35%) reported gambling at least once in the past year.
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Episode 27: Opiates Addiction and Providing Support - Part 2
June 6th, 2019 | Season 1 | 19 mins 50 secs
opiates addiction, providing support
People with drug dependence may be suffering in silence, missing opportunities for treatment and prolonging the process of recovery, as a result of the stigma and prejudice that society clings to regarding those with drug addictions.
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Episode 26: Opiates Addiction and Harm Reduction Treatment
June 5th, 2019 | Season 1 | 18 mins 46 secs
opiates addiction and harm reduction treatment
Opiates refers to a group of drugs that includes heroin. Other opiate drugs include opium, morphine, pethidine, codeine, oxycodone, methadone and buprenorphine. Opiates are classed as depressants. They slow down activity in the brain and central nervous s
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Episode 25: Andrea's Journey
June 4th, 2019 | Season 1 | 35 mins 20 secs
andrea's journey
In this episode of the DCO podcast we talk to Andrea about her struggle with addiction.
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Episode 24: Taking Care of the Heart - Your Resiliency Matters
May 28th, 2019 | Season 1 | 21 mins 15 secs
taking care of the heart, your resiliency matters
Our primary task as crisis/distress line call responders first and foremost, is to be supportive and empathetic listeners. This can be immensely rewarding, and the main reason why so many people volunteer for several years. However for some, there can be a personal cost for all that caring. Some might ask, why is it that some people can do shift after shift on crisis/distress lines and others report they feel overwhelmed by some of the callers, or say they need a break as it becomes too much to handle? Why can some people bounce back quickly after taking a particularly difficult call while others might lose sleep at night worrying if they said the right thing or wonder how that person made out? Some people are just able to rebound from almost any adversity and carry on with their lives while for some, it is not so easy. The answer is resilience - our ability to bounce back and adjust to challenges that life sends our way. It is our self-righting mechanism, our ability to restore our equilibrium, when it has