Mental Health Resources for Kids and Parents Part of TVO's Mental Health Matters

• TVOParents.com offers new videos and archive content on kids' mental health
• TVOKids to air Help Zone special, My Feelings Matter,  May 7 beginning at 4 pm ET

TORONTO, April 27, 2012 /CNW/ - An estimated 1 in 5 children and youth in Ontario under the age of 19 suffer from a child psychiatric disorder (Ontario Child Health Study). As Canada's "most trusted" and "most educational" media brand for kids, TVO is using its Mental Health Matters Week to equip parents and kids with the tools they need to navigate this important issue and to promote an on-going dialogue around mental health.

"Good mental and emotional health is critical for a young learner's development," says Pat Ellingson, TVO's Creative Head of Children's Media. "TVO is committed to helping Ontario's kids succeed in school and in life. We hope that the tools TVO provides with TVOParents.com and TVOKids Help Zone will help parents help their kids develop appropriate strategies to address any problems they may be having. Most important to kids is for them to discuss their feelings and talk about what may be bothering them."

TVOParents.com
Beginning today, (April 27), TVOParents.com will feature new video interviews with host Cheryl Jackson welcoming experts on topics including:

• How prevalent is depression in children and how do parents recognize it, with child psychiatrist, Dr. Marshall Korenblum
• Can anxiety stimulate creativity, with psychologist Dr. Robin Alter
• What is the link between kids who experience racism and trauma, with Dr. Kwame McKenzie, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

TVOParents.com will also feature videos and articles from last year's Ontario Public School Boards' Association Summit for Child and Youth Mental Health and other content from its archive. 

TVOKids - My Feelings Matter Help Zone Special
As part of TVO's commitment to preparing Ontario's kids for success in school, TVOKids host Kara welcomes Kids Help Phone counselor Duane for My Feelings Matter, a special edition of the TVOKids Help Zone on Monday May 7 from 4-7pm ET live in The Space, TVOKids' afterschool programming block, and then extended on tvokids.com from 7-730 pm ET.

Kara and Duane will answer emails and calls from kids about issues at school or at home that may be affecting their well-being and discuss the outcomes from a month-long questionnaire found on tvokids.com. They will address issues around loneliness and sadness; what you can do if you don't seem to have any friends; and what happens when it seems no one understands you.

As well, every email sent in with questions for counselor Duane will be entered into a random draw for an interactive gaming system. TVOKids recognizes the social value in children gaming with friends and family. Gaming helps kids to reach out and find new ways to interact and play. 

Mental Health Matters is an initiative of TVO in association with the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) to inform and engage Ontarians in issues of mental health and addiction. Recently, CAMH received a generous donation from philanthropist Margaret McCain to enhance child and youth mental health initiatives. Hon. Margaret McCain will be a guest on The Agenda with Steve Paikin Friday May 4 at 8 pm ET.

About TVO
TVO is Ontario's public educational media organization and a trusted source of interactive educational content that informs, inspires and stimulates curiosity and thought. TVO's vision is to empower people to be engaged citizens of Ontario through educational media. TVO is funded primarily by the Province of Ontario and is a registered charity supported by sponsors and thousands of donors. For more information, visit tvo.org.

About CAMH
The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) is Canada's largest mental health and addiction teaching hospital, as well as one of the world's leading research centres in the area of addiction and mental health. CAMH combines clinical care, research, education, policy development and health promotion to help transform the lives of people affected by mental health and addiction issues.

Where to Find TVO

On air: Cable channel 2 (may vary in some areas) Bell TV channel 265 TVO HD on Bell Fibe TV channel 1265 Rogers TVO HD channel 580 Rogers-On-Demand channel 100 Shaw Direct channel 353

Websites: tvo.org tvokids.com tvoparents.com ilc.org

Online: Yahoo! YouTube Rogers-On-Demand-Online iTunes BlackBerry App World™

Connect: Facebook Twitter

 

Media Contact for TVO:
Paul Ginis
TVO Communications and Marketing
416.484.2600 x 2445
[email protected]

Contact for CAMH:
Michael Torres
CAMH Media Relations
Public Affairs
(office) 416.595.6015
(mobile) 416.254.5921
(twitter) @CAMHnews