Experts Connect with HelpMeSara

Sara Dimerman in conversation with Phyllis Taylor. Over the course of this episode you will learn more about:

• Phyllis Taylor and what led to writing her book
• How well equipped Ontario's prison system is to rehabilitate offenders
• Issues that prisons seem either well or poorly equipped to handle
• Whether prisons are best suited for certain offenders and not the right place for others
• With crime on the rise, what Phyllis recommends in regards to keeping our streets safe

Sara Dimerman in conversation with Lesley Rosenthal about saying goodbye to a beloved pet.

Over the course of this episode you will learn more about:

• How saying goodbye to a beloved pet is different to or the same as saying goodbye to a beloved human family member or friend
• What to keep in mind when making the decision to euthanize
• Whether to include children in the decision to euthanize your pet
• Knowing when the time is "right" to say goodbye
• Some options when euthanizing one's pet
• Whether or not children should be present for the euthanasia
• Some options in regards to burial or cremation of one's pet, for example
• What's "normal" in regards to your feelings in the days, weeks and months following the passing of your pet
• Some ways of memorializing or honouring one's pet
• If there are other pets at home, what changes might you see in them following the loss of their companion

Resources:

• University of Guelph's Ontario Veterinary College guide for coping with the loss of a pet
• Midtown Mobile Veterinary Hospice Services

Sara Dimerman in conversation with Alexandra Jai about about drumming out our feelings.

Over the course of this episode you will learn more about:

• Alexandra's personal journey and how drumming allowed her to express her feelings and heal when she needed it most
• Mindful breath, mindful movement and mindful hand drumming and how, by integrating breath, body and beat we may experience rhythm bliss
• Finding one's rhythm zone and how to clear the unhelpful chatter in our heads

Sara Dimerman in conversation with Kimberly Gawne about homeschooling. Over the course of this episode you will learn more about:

• What homeschooling means
• Whether there's an age or grade at which it's best to begin homeschooling
• Whether homeschooling is the right choice for every child and family
• The benefits of homeschooling
• Whether there are any drawbacks to homeschooling, including the possibility of less socialization
• Whether or not one needs to have a background in education or working with children in order to homeschool them
• Whether or not children who are homeschooled typically continue with homeschooling into high school
• How older teens, entering college or university programs after being homeschooled, fare, socially and academically, for example

Sara Dimerman in conversation with Stephanie Gutnik about how recent grads can prepare themselves for the working world.

Over the course of this episode you will learn more about:

• Whether it's normal or not to feel fearful about what lies ahead?
• Whether or not most people find that "right" job and one that they love right away
• Whether the work culture as we now know it - often hybrid or completely remote - is a detriment to young people going into the working world or of benefit to them
• Whether or not there's a difference between a "job" and a "career"
• How much should monetary compensation be taken into consideration when accepting a job
• What Stephanie wishes others would have told her when she first began working

Sara Dimerman in conversation with Carol Mott about the power of perseverance in one's healing process. Over the course of this episode you will learn more about:

• What took place on April 21st, 2022 when Carol suffered a spontaneous hemorrhage in her spine which caused paralysis from the waist down
• What happened in the days and weeks following that very sudden and shocking experience
• What impact her state of mind had on her recovery
• Some of the most notable factors that contributed towards her persevering each day
• Support systems that helped her most
• The power of perseverance in her healing process

Sara Dimerman in conversation with medical student Tera Armel about her personal journey on retraining her brain to manage chronic pain.

Over the course of this episode you will learn more about:

• Neuroplastic pain
• What happened to Tera during her final year of undergrad at university and how her life changed after that
• Interventions to manage pain and how they helped or didn't
• How mental health is impacted by chronic pain

Additional resources:

• The Way Out, by Alan Gordon with Alon Ziv
• Curable
• Mayim Bialik and Alan Gordon

Sara Dimerman in conversation with Rich Padulo. Over the course of this episode you will learn more about:

• Treat Accessibly, when and how it got started and its future goals
• How Treat Accessibly has grown over the years and the support it is receiving from communities and organizations
• How you can learn more about Treat Accessibly and what you can can do to get involved

Sara Dimerman in conversation with Larissa Mills. Over the course of this episode you will learn more about:

• Why cell phones should be banned at school
• Whether, other than school, they should be banned elsewhere
• The impact of putting cell phones in the hands of toddlers or pre-schoolers
• The impact of cell phones on children's physical, psychological and social growth
• Whether it's ever too late to turn things around ie how parents can work towards breaking their child's dependence on cell phones or technology, in general
• How parents and schools can work together for the betterment of children's health

Sara Dimerman in conversation with Dr. Laura Loli-Dano. Over the course of this episode you will learn more about:

• The five universal WHO (World Health Organization) QualityRights Standards and why they matter in the context of self or a loved one receiving care
• How being fully aware of people's human rights, in the context of health care systems, no matter how burdened the health care systems are, helps make informed and people-centred decisions
• The importance of increased awareness of quality rights - on the part of people receiving care, their loved ones', and health care personnel, especially in settings such as the mental health sector where people's exercising of their rights is often limited or infringed upon
• What we can do to make sure that human rights are at the heart of care in an overburdened health care system