No matter how overwhelmed you are or what you are going through, there are opportunities for support and approaches you can take to find community and work toward your mental and emotional well-being.
As a student organization that advocates for mental health, StrengthIN strives to help you with exactly that. I’m a second-year student at U of T majoring in neuroscience and psychology, and I have always wholeheartedly been passionate about helping others and making a positive impact in their lives.
Knowing many people who have struggled with mental health issues, in addition to having experience in counselling and studying about mental illness myself, I am proud to be part of the StrengthIN team as marketing director, working to help create a community full of self-love and care.
The team also aims to raise awareness about mental health, make sure no one is alone, and ensure that people are taking good care of themselves. In my free time, I enjoy watching and playing soccer and hockey, as well as studying topics related to philosophy and the mind.
Kyla Trkulja and Shreeyaa Ramana, Co-Presidents of StrengthIN.
StrengthIN is a mental health club at the University of Toronto run by a diverse and welcoming group of students. With increasing difficulties and tasks during high school and university, we are all subject to different stressors and to feeling overwhelmed, and all of this pressure can lead to struggles with mental health and anxiety. In fact, statistics show that there has been a rise in anxiety and mental health difficulties among university students in Ontario in recent years.
Our club believes that educating students about mental health all the way from elementary school to university is crucial to aid them in dealing with the complexities of academics and life stressors.
Rhidita Saha, Outreach Director of StrengthIN.
At StrengthIN, we aim to help prepare students for these difficulties and also help them cope with their strife. Our organization uses many methods of education and interactive opportunities for students to learn more about mental health education, not only as a way to better understand it for themselves or friends who are experiencing reduced mental health, but also to learn and apply knowledge and coping strategies to enhance and improve the quality of experience as a student. Our goal is to help students thrive in the most positive way possible, and to help them stay healthy and optimistic.
Ayesha Rashidi, Event and Creative Director of StrengthIN.
We host free interactive workshops in the GTA and online, with coping and prevention strategies for all students within the University of Toronto and beyond. Many of our workshop topics include self-care, coping skills, cognitive distortions, positive self-talk, and academic stresses.
We also have a new and upcoming podcast where we explore different mental health topics and give a voice to speakers with past experiences. Even if you are just looking to learn more about mental health or go through training to educate yourself on how to better deal with and help your loved ones experiencing mental health difficulties, we can provide you with training and resources.
How can you get involved?
You can also get involved with StrengthIN and obtain co-curricular credit if you are a University of Toronto student by becoming a workshop facilitator, joining our peer support buddy program, writing for our blog, attending weekly drop-in sessions, contributing to our podcast, or even by simply becoming an ambassador for our organization.
StrengthIN is open to everyone without exception and we welcome you with open arms to voice your journey and become a significant facilitator in the journeys of others in their struggles with conquering mental health.
