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  Thunder
Bay's 2 largest health care providers (Thunder Bay Regional
Health Sciences Centre and St. Joseph's Care Group) challenged
staff, physicians and volunteers to get out and practice Tai
Chi ... an excellent mind + body exercise as part of Mental
Health Week 2005 (May 2nd - 8th). The goal was to have the
most participants come out over lunch hour to learn Tai Chi.
Tai Chi Masters were located at 5 sites throughout the community,
leading others in the practice of Taijiquan. Master Peng You
Lian (President of the Canadian Organization of Traditional
Taiji Quan Associations) "kicked" off the challenge
at Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre at 11 am Monday
morning in what many call "meditation in motion".
Dr. Peter Voros, psychologist at the Thunder Bay Regional
Health Sciences Centre, provided welcoming comments to all
the Tai Chi participants. Ron Saddington, President and CEO,
TBRHSC and Carl White, President, St. Joseph's Care Group
addressed the participants explaining what good mental health
is and why mental health is important. Master Peng You Lian
stressed how Tai Chi connects both mind and body health.
Mental Health Awareness Week is a national event held annually
to create awareness of mental health issues. This year's theme
is Practice Mind + Body. The message centres on healthy mind,
body and spirit. It's a positive, proactive, enjoyable way
to equip ourselves for the many and varied challenges that
life can bring.
The Tai Chi Challenge hopes to encourage the community of
Thunder Bay community to take time out of their busy schedules
and practice good mental and physical health.
Mental fitness helps us to achieve and sustain a mentally
healthy state, just as physical fitness helps us to achieve
and sustain a state of good physical health.
Having a good mental health enables us to more fully enjoy
and appreciate our environment and the people in it. We can
often better resist stress and tackle our challenges in a
positive frame of mind. It allows us to be creative, to use
our mental abilities to the fullest extent, and make the most
of opportunities.
People's responses to stress, and difficult events, are as
individual as the people experiencing them. So everyone will
assess and measure their mental fitness in different ways.
But there are common factors which facilitate good mental
health. By considering some of these factors, it is possible
to identify how we can improve our mental fitness.
- Realistic attitude: When we are able to feel and draw
on optimism, a sense of perspective and flexibility, we
gain the resilience needed to endure shock, hardship or
change, and to carry on with our lives.
- Self-esteem and confidence: Instead
of focusing on what we are lacking, we need to focus on
the qualities we do have that make us a good friend, a valued
colleague, a loving parent.
- Emotional support: Close ties with family
and friends build support networks through which we receive
help and, in turn, help others.
- Mental agility: Giving our minds and
bodies a workout by engaging in a variety of mental activities,
such as solving crosswords or playing a musical instrument,
enhances mental agility and promotes overall wellness.
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