It’s the beginning of 2025. Wouldn’t it be great if we shifted the dial even a little bit on some hard conversations and topics this year? A shift toward re-humanizing people and their difficult experiences with mental health, money struggles, homelessness, substance use, abuse, and more. Today, we’re sharing some of Sophia’s story.
Sophia speaks of her experiences with suicide attempts and depression with courage and vulnerability. To combat the stigma surrounding mental health issues, Sophia is sharing her story as widely as possible. She wants to help others see that they aren’t alone and to advocate for more programs and services to meet young people where they’re at and make hope and change possible.
Sophia’s story holds many challenges. “I was so high functioning,” says Sophia. “I did my schoolwork, I worked, played high-level hockey – you couldn’t see I was struggling.” Sophia has dealt with major depression, anxiety disorders, trauma, and several suicide attempts as part of her life experience for the last couple of years. Adults in her life, such as her parents, coaches, and support workers have struggled a lot with how to respond to this. Her peers also haven’t always known what to do or say. The most painful, though, has been when people try to force toxic positivity, invalidate, or regard her with suspicion when they interact with her.
This has made it ever more vital for Sophia to have spaces where people get it. “I’ve felt so connected with my support workers, psychiatrists, teachers, and they have helped me so much along the way,” Sophia explains. “To reintegrate myself into the community. To support me in whatever I need. Even in feeling isolated, I still felt connected and loved because I knew people were there for me.”
It took time for Sophia to find these supports though. Largely, this was because there are a lot more programs available for adults with depression than for youth. At 17, she was bounced back and forth between children’s and adult services because she was at a transition age. Sophia recalls one time she was seeking help, was sent from one place to another and back again only to be turned away, and she just had to go home without help.
Other times, when accessing services, people (even professionals) have dismissed her experiences as “a hormonal thing, or a phase, or a cry for attention.” It was hard to find people who would truly listen. A nurse once said, “Did you want to die? Or was this all for attention.” It was incredibly hurtful, and Sophia found it frustrating because what she was feeling wasn’t something that she could easily explain, and there’s so much stigma that exists surrounding mental health.
People struggling to understand also reinforced much of the isolation she felt. “I tend to withdraw socially,” says Sophia. “I avoid other people, knowing that I could cause some worry or be a burden to them.” Combine that with fears of being written off and it can be so difficult to ask for help.
Thankfully, Sophia did find help. She’s grounded in her own drive and resilience, and now she’s connected with people and programs that she directly attributes to supporting her in making it to today. This is a common theme we’ve seen in the stories that people have shared with us: connection. People can make a huge difference in our lives and in our abilities to see other paths forward.
There are great programs out there for youth struggling with depression, including Foundry, Vancouver Coastal Health’s short-term assessment and crisis intervention programs. However, there are many accessibility barriers to these programs and others. There are often long waiting lists and limited, tight resources. Programs aren’t always able to provide long-term support, which can leave people feeling like they’re just another number in a system designed to push them through as quickly as possible, rather than as an individual who will have their own pace for healing. “What people don’t always see is that I still struggle. I may appear to be doing well, but beneath the surface, it’s not always easy. I’ve made a lot of progress, and I am better, but I won’t sugarcoat it – there are still tough days, and there are still moments when difficult thoughts arise. The struggle hasn’t completely disappeared.”
Oftentimes, like for Sophia, mental health isn’t a linear journey. Long-term, stable supports are life changing. “Because of my amazing circle and my commitment to DBT therapy, I got my spark back. Now, I’m pursuing a college education in Child and Youth Care and sharing my story with high school students.” Why? To help shift that dial: to facilitate these conversations on difficult subjects, to encourage people to reach out for help, and to be able to some day provide support to others needing it.
We wanted to share Sophia’s story because we believe in what she’s advocating for: the importance of accessible tools, resources, and supports for youth. At FSGV, we see these gaps in care play out a lot for our youth clients and it’s part of why Directions Youth Services is here for youth 13-24 years old. At Family Services of Greater Vancouver, we don’t have a specific program for youth with depression, but we are focused on trust and community building and helping to connect youth with the supports they need. We stand beside Sophia, in sharing her story, in helping others to understand the unique obstacles youth with depression and other mental health struggles face, and in helping others to feel less alone when hearing experiences like hers.
Thank you for sharing your story, Sophia!