Yvonne Poulin shares her opinions on dealing with mental health and criminal behavior in this 3-part op-ed series.
I don’t know about you, but I’m exasperated. I’m angry about the fact that violent individuals appear to be “free to roam our streets and terrorize our community.”
I’ll confess to having evil thoughts that could remedy the situation in the short-term. I want to point a finger and find one or more individuals to blame. My angry self wants permanent revenge. I find myself obsessing over the issue and I feel like I’m walking around with a dark cloud over my head. Low grade nausea, hyper-irritability, and heavy-heartedness seem to be a part of everyday symptoms. I don’t like feeling this way. It’s literally making me sick.
Generally speaking, I’m just a people-lovin’, outdoorsy ’lil Registered Massage Therapist in our sweet town. I’m proud to call Tumbler Ridge my home and whenever I travel then return; I count my blessings as I compare this lifestyle to wherever I have previously lived.
The TR high school shooting darkened my rose-colored view of our town. I tell myself that it could have happened anywhere, but I sincerely believe it could have been avoided. Evidently, there are gaps in the system that are not sufficiently treating those with mental health issues, nor are they protecting the public. My heart is with those directly affected, and I applaud everyone who is taking a non-violent approach to addressing the February 10 tragedy and attempting to make change by holding individuals, companies, and institutions accountable. You restore my faith in humanity and remind me that we CAN make a positive difference. I’m proud of our no-nonsense approach to the challenges we face in this remote community.
By the end of summer, I sensed that despite every sad milestone, my clients and I were moving forward and breathing a little more easily. For a while there seemed to be calm after the storm. Sadly, that was only a brief reprieve. Since September we’ve had further onslaughts: We learned the devastating news of a likely collaboration relating to the shooting.
In two separate incidents, alarms at the school’s site were set off, with police and ambulance sirens blazing. There was no criminal activity involved, but each time it felt like an electric cattle-prod, triggering memories and revving up those traumatic responses for myself and many others.
Now there’s an investigation into an incident involving a man flashing a knife at youth on October 17. He was apprehended under the Mental Health Act and released in less than 24 hours! He was arrested again and is now in custody facing multiple charges.
My higher self recognizes that underneath the anger and its presence in my body, mind, and spirit is profound sadness. I feel compassion for others who are suffering more severely. Now I’m even feeling nervous about walking home in the dark.
So, what can I do about the anger in my soul? The dark thoughts I have are truly not consistent with how I roll and who I want to be on this planet. Although I recognize the anger, shifting those reactive thoughts to a more mindful headspace is helping me cope. Self-care, educating myself on the legal processes that need to happen, and writing this series are cathartic actions that help ease the burden. For me, self-care includes spending time in nature, engaging in solution-based discussions, exercise, and good ’ol rest and relaxation.
I’m choosing to educate myself. It’s easy to blame the RCMP or the psychiatrists that appear to be “letting these criminals roam free”. Please consider where your anger may be mis-directed. To the uninformed, it may look like those professionals are not doing their jobs. They are. But what they can do is governed by the laws of the country. In this case: the Mental Health Act.
The Mental Health Act is legislature that law enforcement officers and mental health care professionals are obligated to abide by. This Act endows persons with different rights and restrictions depending on whether they admit themselves voluntarily versus involuntarily. Add substance abuse to the issue and there are even more considerations.
Believe me, this leaves me with more questions than answers! Until the police investigation is completed and a BC Coroner’s Inquest releases their findings, I simply wish to shed light on the latest incident and potentially help relieve my and others’ anger and exasperation.
When I believe there is no single professional to fault, and that the gaps may be in “the system”, it shifts my mindset from vengeful thinking to open curiosity and creating positive change.
What can you do to work towards peace of mind? If you need someone to talk to, please consult your counselor or set up a meeting with one of the many mental health care workers available through our clinic at the hospital. If you’d like to meet with others who are learning how to cope, please consider attending the TR Mental Wellness Peer Support Group that meets on the second and fourth Monday nights of each month at 7 pm at Willow Hall.
If you know of someone who is struggling mentally, emotionally, or socially, please reach out and ask how they are doing; help connect them to resources and supports for assistance. If you see or hear of questionable activities report it immediately to our RCMP at (250)242-5252, or 911 for emergencies.
In the next column I hope to get more clarification by hearing from the experience of those working the system to identify pathways towards creating positive change as well as how some of our community members are learning to cope until that happens.