Knowing where to turn for help when faced with challenges can be confusing. Here’s a place to start for you and your loved ones. Mental wellness outreach from Family Foundations Institute offers tips, resources, support, and referrals for anyone facing mental health challenges.
It’s a good idea to seek a professional opinion on your experiences if:
1. You are unable to perform daily activities or maintain your regular responsibilities.
2. You feel unable to cope or you feel as though you are “barely scraping by” in your daily life.
3. Your experiences have resulted in serious emotional, physical, or financial harm to yourself or others.
4. You have contemplated suicide.
5. You are hearing voices, seeing things, or having other sensorial experiences that cannot be perceived by others.
6. Your family, loved ones, or colleagues have expressed concern for your wellbeing or suggested that you consult a professional.
7. You have engaged in destructive behavior, such as self-injury, restricting food intake, purging, or excessive alcohol or drug use.
Read the article “I thought Good Catholics didn’t need therapy. Then I went” by speaker, freelance writer, and author Simcha Fisher.
Check out this link at Catholic Mental Health for a comprehensive list of diagnoses and issues.
Read this article from the online magazine Mind and Spirit written by a Catholic therapist.
Read this article from the Catholic Register about the role of religion in mental health issues.
Download this free guide from the Raphael Remedy.
Looking for a Catholic therapist? Family Foundations Institute is pleased to provide a directory of affiliated mental health practitioners in the province of Ontario. FFI Affiliates hold valid credentials with their professional Colleges and Associations and subscribe to FFI principles. All Affiliates practice independently of and are not employed by Family Foundations Institute within their role as service providers. Before choosing any therapist, FFI recommends that you verify qualifications and therapeutic approaches to ensure a good fit for your needs.
For more information about Catholic therapists and mental health professionals in your area, contact our Mental Wellness Outreach Coordinator, Anne Marie Posella, RP, CPC, at mentalwellnessffi@nym.hush.com or 519-359-8791.
Anne Marie is a Registered Psychotherapist and Certified Professional Counsellor, and has been practicing psychotherapy for over 10 years. She completed a Master of Arts in Theology from Catholic Distance University, and a Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology from Yorkville University. She also holds a Certificate in Pastoral Ministry from St. Peter’s Institute for Ongoing Formation in the Diocese of London.
Freedom to pursue happiness requires an integrated effort of mind, body, and spirit, during a life-long journey of self-discovery and self-mastery. We also need a balance between reaching out to others for love and connection and returning to ourselves for reflection and rejuvenation. Sometimes when we feel dis-integrated or off-balance, we need help getting unstuck and finding our way back to the road that leads to happiness. I hope you find the support and direction you need to get back on track through FFI’s Mental Wellness Outreach initiatives. - Anne Marie Posella (RP, CPC)
The Catholic Church teaches that human persons are composed of body, mind and spiritual soul, made for relationship with others and governed by natural law. In order to be mentally well, our thoughts, emotions, and actions need to be under the guidance of our reason and will and directed towards our ultimate goal, which is happiness with God in heaven.
Science is the study of creation, both in nature and in human behaviour and society. The Church teaches that since God is the author of creation, there is a friendship between faith and science and that scientific study can lead to holiness. Psychological research conducted by those of faith and good will can help us overcome barriers that stand in the way of hope, healing, and happiness.
It was Socrates who said that “the unexamined life is not worth living.” We can use reason to make sense of how we make sense of our world. Self-reflection and self-awareness can lead to a more intentional way of living and contribute to human flourishing, loving relationships, and a more virtuous life. Here, you’ll find help for your journey of self-discovery that is fully in accord with our Catholic faith.
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