Recently, after much internal debate I decided that Lake Placid Ironman was going to be my first full distance triathlon. Why not shoot for the stars? Lake Placid is the longest running North American Ironman and a former Olympic venue. After doing the research on courses that would potentially suit my strengths I settled on Lake Placid. It checked off all my boxes. Double loop swim. Manageable bike course (if …
Read more My Unlikely Path to Ironman
By Leslie Dragon As a mom with two teenagers and a tween, I know how hard it can be to start up a meaningful conversation with my kids. Most times I’ve tried it, they’re too busy playing on their phones, or if I manage to get them to look up for a second, they’ll respond …
Read more How to get beyond the one-word reply when talking to your teen
What I want I can never have again and yet I manage to survive, even to thrive in moments. But the fact remains that you are gone. Every second. Every minute of every day that further separates you from me makes me yearn for you even more. I saw a young man who reminds me …
Read more April 28, 2017
For Bell Let’s Talk Day on Wednesday, January 25, I was thrilled to be invited to share my story and information about suicide prevention with hosts of CTV’s The Social. Watch the video here. A few months after my interview aired, co-host of The Social, the wonderful Traci Melchor, released a special announcement …
Read more Bell Let’s Talk Day and the Importance of Sharing Your Story
Originally published on triburlington.ca Today I finished my very first Century Ride. Something very cool and humbling about setting a goal and achieving it. Especially, when it involves others with the same goal. The first 38 miles were fine, albeit with some wind to deal with. A short stop and off again to 54 miles. …
Read more Presidents Day Century Bike Ride
Originally published on Bell’s Let’s Talk Blog. Just when I thought I’d done everything I could to contribute to the conversations around youth mental health and suicide prevention, I read Laura Eggertson’s excellent piece for CBC NEWS, ‘Canada needs a national suicide prevention strategy – because they work’. Her article set out in thoughtful detail …
Read more Why A National Suicide Prevention Strategy is needed—now.
Last year I reached out to Annie McLaughlin, Engagement Manager at the JED Foundation. JED is a national nonprofit based in New York City that exists to protect emotional health and prevent suicide for teens and young adults in the United States. “We’re partnering with high schools and colleges to strengthen their mental health, substance …
Read more The Moth/JED Foundation Workshop in New York City
First appeared in The Huffington Post on September 19, 2016 Chronic Health Conditions, Inflammation And Major Depressive Disorder Imagine living with asthma (inflammatory disorder) and anaphylaxis (autoimmune disorder) almost from the time you were born. Then imagine growing up and your parents have absolutely no understanding of chronic health conditions and the connection between early …
Read more Suicide Prevention: I Want Other Families To Know What Ours Didn’t