By Aria Wilson
July 31st, 2025
BURLINGTON ON
Our world is a changing place. With the introduction of mental health destigmatization comes tough realities. This is one of many stories of a family changed by the devastating impacts of negative mental health. This is the story of my family.
It was the end of the school year in 2020. I thought that I was just going to get a two-week break from school. While I enjoyed the time spent online, playing games with my friends, it never occurred to me that the adults and loved ones in my life were slowly beginning to feel more alone, more isolated from the world around them. With the virtual shift caused by the COVID-19 pandemic came job losses and a decline in communication with people who you loved. Sometimes a difference of opinion was enough to tear people apart at such a troubling time.
I often come back to the pandemic when I think of the causes of the uptick in mental health problems lately, especially in more mature demographics. According to the World Health Organization, global levels of anxiety and depression increased twenty-five per cent in the first year of the pandemic. I wonder if perhaps the lack of in-person interaction was enough to cause some of the cases. I know that this certainly contributed to my story.
It wasn’t until a couple of years later that the problems for my family came to the surface. At this time, a member of my family had already been struggling with his physical health for several years. He had slipped a disc in his spine, a painful and debilitating injury. Through countless doctor’s visits, several neurology appointments, and seemingly endless surgeon consults, nothing had been done to change the situation this individual faced.
Due to hospital systems being overworked and overbooked, surgery continuously got pushed further. The longer we waited, the more it started to feel like we would never get the chance to see change. I think this is when my family member’s mental health began to dwindle.
Losing hope by the minute, there seemed to be very little that could be done for our family. Other than occasional spinal injections that do little but numb the spine, mobility became even more of a challenge and limited this individual’s connection to the world.
Left: Eric Vandewall, president and CEO of Joseph Brant Hospital; Michael Paletta; launched the For All Minds campaign with a $5-million donation from Michael and Laura Paletta towards a $20-million community fundraising goal.
It all came to a head when my family member was admitted to the hospital in the Inpatient Mental Health Unit. With all the physical strain that had not been resolved, a mental toll had ultimately overtaken the problems plaguing my family member.
The first time we admitted him to the hospital, he only spent a night before he came home. I believe this was a mistake, as he had to return to the hospital no more than a week later.
While the programs available in the hospital were helpful during his stay, we found little communication and follow-up after his visits, leading to a cycle of short stays at home, followed by the necessity to return to the hospital.
We have finally, after more than five stays in the mental health unit, found a day program to assist the family member’s mental health. And still, to this day, he has not received any notice of available surgery for mobility complications.
I do not place blame on the hospital systems; I know that staff have truly cared for my family and want to see my family member get better.
If nothing, let my story serve as a reminder to spend time with your family, teach them new ways to interact with each other and stay active, and certainly don’t take any of your time together for granted.
Aria Wilson will return to Carlton University in September to begin her second year as a journalism student
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