blogcutter

Last month, I donated to the Good Companions Seniors Centre, so this month I thought I would focus on the youth demographic, specifically an organization offering services to those in the Ottawa area affected by eating disorders:

https://www.hopewell.ca/about-us

During the two years we have been in pandemic mode, there has been an astronomical increase in the prevalence of eating disorders amongst youth. This includes anorexia, bulimia and other forms of unhealthy eating: excessive fast food and "junk food", overeating, fad diets and so on. I put the quotes around "junk food" because in a way, I feel there is no such thing as junk food: if it nourishes you, it does have a value. It's just a question of quantities and portion sizes and balance in one's daily or weekly intake.

People are anxious and resort to comfort eating, which may include foods containing large amounts of sugar, salt, fat and other substances with limited nutritional benefits, to the detriment of other nutrients. Young people, stuck at home with their family at a time in their lives when they would ordinarily be doing more in-person mingling with their peer group, are often especially susceptible to such anxiety. They feel a greater urgency to get out there and get on with their lives!

It's not only young people who are affected, of course. Some people, young or old, may be unable to afford fresh, healthy food. If they've lost their jobs and livelihoods, they may have to rely on food banks, which for practical reasons tend to provide canned and packaged goods that are less appealing. Regardless of income level, they may live in a "food desert" or be limiting their trips to the grocery store or other market, again for logistical reasons.

On a more positive note, lockdowns and restaurant closures have certainly sparked a widespread interest in "slow food", cooked or baked at home from scratch. It is usually tastier, more nutritious, cheaper and more ecologically correct than any fast-food counterpart!

Eating disorders are a problem for both physical and mental health. As a result, they tend to fall through the cracks of our publicly funded health care system. Hopewell treats its patients in a holistic manner, recognizing that there is no clear demarcation point between physical and mental health or between nutrition and medicine.

This week's donation goes to the CHEO Telethon:

https://www.cheotelethon.com/home

The Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario holds a telethon once a year. Usually there are also lots of in-person events, the big one being the Teddy Bears' Picnic complete with B.A.S.H. tent for sick and injured teddy bears, food, face painting, fortune telling and plenty of parkland to enjoy. I used to have a purple HEEO (CHEO in French, at least in those days) sweatshirt with a teddy bear on it that I bought at the office as part of their fundraising activities there, but that of course is long gone now.

This year, with most of the traditional large fundraising events off the table, various local celebrities have been shaving their heads or dyeing their hair in vibrant hues to raise additional funds. I hope it works, as the amount raised in 2020 was down substantially from previous years, just at a time when children and youth are in the greatest state of crisis. Demands on CHEO's services have never been greater and the aftermath of Covid-19 in terms of mental health and clearing the backlog of non-Covid priorities stands to keep CHEO's workload higher than ever.

CHEO was not around when I was a kid but I do recall that I was somewhere in my teens when plans were in the works for it. I even volunteered for a few shifts at a booth at the Ex, to provide some general information and hand out a few pamphlets. I think there was a small-scale model of what the finished structure would look like and where the various services would be located. It's all so long ago but it did mean that I got free passes to get into the Exhibition grounds!

I'd still like to see an equivalent Quebec institution for the Outaouais, and this may happen yet. In April 2020, for example, I wrote about the Charlotte Mantha endowment fund, dedicated to building a Gatineau children's hospital:

https://blogcutter.dreamwidth.org/tag/charlotte+mantha+endowment+fund

I've been checking the Gatineau Hospital Foundation's website from time to time to see what projects are in the works and it does look as if Hull will have a new hospital in the next few years, though not solely dedicated to paediatrics. We shall see.

Will kids be able to attend summer camp this year? Maybe.

Coronavirus vaccines are here but not yet available to children and teens. That could definitely put a crimp in plans for summer activities. Yet at the same time, we're all itching to get outside after a long winter of being cooped up - and outdoor environments are generally much safer than indoor ones in our pandemic-dominated world!

So this week I decided to contribute to one of my favourite charities, the Ten Oaks project. Its original venture was a summer camp for children and youth from LGBT2S families but in the past couple of decades it has branched out to offer a variety of ongoing services to orientation- and gender-variant families. Some activities, such as the swim evenings for trans youth and families, have been suspended because of Covid but many others are still offered. Last summer they held Camp Stay-at-Home and that is expected to continue this year, hopefully alongside a more traditional in-person camping experience with additional safety protocols in effect (applications are being accepted now for Summer 2021). Then there are the parenting discussions, a children's and youth book drive in collaboration with Venus Envy, and much more:

https://www.tenoaksproject.org/

Out of curiosity, I also searched for Camp au Grand Bois, a kind of back-to-the-land style camp for
Gen X-ers that our daughter attended in the 90s (and which provided the entire family with the impetus we needed to go vegetarian). Looks like the property is still intact, still owned by the same couple, but with a new name. And instead of being a kids' camp, it seems to be more of a general, privately-owned camping and events site while still remaining true to its roots:

http://centreaugrandcoeur.com/facilities

I'm getting spring fever just thinking about all this. No matter - next week is expected to be warm and mostly sunny, perfect for outdoor spring activities. And today, heading out for our walk, we discovered a crocus in flower on our lawn!

Maybe. Maybe not. The greyer I get, the more I see issues in shades of grey, not black and white. Or, for that matter, red, orange, yellow or green.

I hear that the Quebec government is considering not only extending the lockdown, but also imposing a curfew. Meanwhile, Ottawa's Covid numbers have been trending sharply upwards since Ontario included the city in its (minimum) 4-week lockdown.

Clearly that doesn't prove that the lockdown CAUSED the uptick in numbers, but I do think that in some respects, Lockdown Ottawa may have done more harm than good, particularly when it comes to teens and young adults who would normally be just starting to venture out and make their way in the grown up world. People for whom the peer group, their circle of friends, classmates, work colleagues, acquaintances and contemporaries, tends to be of pretty great importance.

Until lockdown took effect on December 26, Ottawa was in the "orange" zone, verging on yellow. There were still some opportunities for young people to socialize. They could go skiing. They could go shopping. They could go to a restaurant or a bar. All under controlled conditions, of course - and probably pretty safe conditions too, if the numbers were any indication.

Now they are allowed to do none of those things. Technically they're not allowed to host or attend private gatherings either. But "technically" is the operative word here. Many, perhaps most people, are following the rules; others are bending them a little; a few are no doubt flouting them entirely and organizing anti-mask rallies at which they confidently proclaim that the virus is one big hoax.

Here's the thing, though: it's much easier to enforce the law at a commercial establishment than in a private home. Police and by-law types can't be everywhere at once. The scofflaws who do get caught are most likely those who live in the student ghetto, those who have darker skin, those that some neighbour or other holds a grudge against, whether or not it's for a valid reason. Meanwhile, people who live in affluent, neighbourhoods, especially if they are personable and generally well-liked, can get away with even the most serious and blatant flouting of rules. Those five vehicles in the laneway plus any hiding in the 3-car garage? Well, that family does own a lot of cars, you know. I really wouldn't like to get on their bad side - they're salt of the earth sorts, pillars of the community!

Law enforcement is just one tool, and not necessarily a particularly powerful one at that. Far better in most cases, I think, is to make it easy to do the right thing. To be socially conscious and socially considerate, which for now may mean being a bit anti-social when it comes to in-person contact.

Consider how society has evolved in terms of other issues unrelated to the pandemic. We no longer have capital punishment in this country. Or corporal punishment in schools. In most communities, non-judgemental sex education and birth control, including access to abortion, are now reasonably available to most young people who want or need them, including those below the age of majority. These are just some of the changes I've seen in my lifetime.

In a number of other areas, we still have quite a way to go. For example: do we really think that putting gory pictures and dire warnings on cigarette packages will deter young people from smoking? Or using plain packaging, hiding them behind the counter or outlawing cheaper, fruit-flavoured or candy-flavoured varieties?

With alcohol, we no longer have to skulk into the liquor store and fill out a little form to get our beverage of choice; we've lowered the drinking age below 21 in most (all?) provinces while still warning against drunk driving or alcohol abuse during pregnancy. That's some progress, I think.

Still, I think the "forbidden fruit" aspect of tobacco or alcohol or cannabis or any other kind of potentially addictive substance is very often the main driver of serious substance abuse issues in young people. If they had grown up having the occasional civilized glass of wine with mum and dad at dinner, would they still feel compelled to go get hammered when work or classes ended for the weekend? Not so much, I suspect. And our children's generation was if anything subjected to more in the way of "helicopter parenting" than we ever were, which might have further strengthened the Gen X and Millennials' need to rebel.

Anyway, back to the matter of lockdowns. I don't think there's any going back now and I don't see Ottawa, or any of Ontario or Quebec getting out of lockdown any time soon. I hope things turn around sooner rather than later. And I hope we are filing away a few "lessons learned" to apply to the next public health emergency!

This week's donation goes to CAPSA, which is an acronym for Community Addictions Peer Support Association:

https://capsa.ca/recovery-day-ottawa/

Today, September 25, is Recovery Day Ottawa, a day devoted to the support of those grappling with addictions and substance abuse issues.

Mayor Jim Watson has also proclaimed today Dave Smith Day. Dave Smith died recently and his humanitarian legacy in making Ottawa a better place for disadvantaged residents is well known. He is perhaps best known for the Dave Smith Youth Treatment Centre.

Young people, regardless of personal or family circumstances, are typically dealing with a lot of growing pains even if their physical and mental health is comparatively good and stable. Usually, they are forming new bonds with people outside of their immediate family and household. But this process of developing new relationships with others is hindered considerably by pandemic rules and conditions. They may turn to alcohol, cannabis or opioids to dull their pain or compensate for the lack of positive interpersonal interactions with others.

Fortunately, many young people have a rich online life, much of it positive.

Recovery Day will be celebrated virtually today between the hours of 3 and 8PM. Details are available on the CAPSA website.

Do-it-yourself tests that you get at the pharmacy and carry out in the privacy of your own home: surely that's not such a radical idea these days? I mean, where would we be without home pregnancy tests, for example? So why not self-testing for COVID-19?

Once kids go back to school, it will fall to the students and their parents to decide each day whether they are well enough to go to school each morning. They've been advised to err on the side of caution. It seems to me that giving them one more tool to aid in this crucial decision-making process is eminently sensible. Many doctors and other health care professionals would agree but not, it seems, our federal health authority.

Tests currently exist that enable you to spit into a tube or swab your nose, wait a few minutes, and get a positive or negative result. Some of these rapid tests are designed to detect viral proteins, others to detect viral RNA. While they are not as sensitive, and therefore not as reliable as RT-PCR testing (the kind that's much more expensive, that you have to line up for 4 hours to get, and for which you need to wait several days for results), they're great for providing the kind of quick preliminary diagnosis that parents are going to be expected to make on a regular basis, whether or not they have much health care expertise!

One of the doctors making an urgent plea to the feds to reconsider is Dr. Andrew Morris of the Sinai Health System and University Health Network in Toronto. He points out that without a vaccine or reliable treatment or cure, our best bet is to keep infected people out of buildings where they will unknowingly spreading the virus. "Which is why he finds it 'absurd' that Heath Canada [sic] says the risks of home or self-testing kits outweigh the benefits."

The official Health Canada position is that if we let the great unwashed use these kits, they won't use them properly, they'll misinterpret the results, there'll be too many false negatives and it won't be possible to collect all the results, which are crucial to shaping public policy. Hmmm. That sounds a lot like the reasons they initially touted for NOT wearing masks! Rather paternalistic if you ask me. Moreover, in their excess of spit and vinegar, it seems to me that they may actually be INCREASING our potential risk of exposure.

So here's a link to the article I read:

https://nationalpost.com/health/home-covid-19-tests-could-help-find-people-while-they-are-contagious-experts-say-health-canada-isnt-convinced

The perfect test doesn't exist and there are still lots of things we need to get a handle on. For instance:

We need a more complete list of possible symptoms - better still if we can pinpoint a few reliable symptoms that are not also symptomatic of dozens of other common illness.

When people are asymptomatic but test positive, how often should they be re-tested?

How long is the incubation period, when a person is contagious but showing no symptoms? And how long do they remain contagious after they have apparently recovered?

How long does immunity last after the patient is fully recovered? We need to know this even once we have a vaccine, in order to plan the timing of booster shots.

These things have assumed an even greater urgency just lately, as the new cases being identified increasingly involve young people. Moreover, young people - youth and young adults - tend to be precisely the ones who do not have the luxury of staying home and isolating. They need to be getting an education and holding down a job, establishing themselves in a career, meeting people, perhaps travelling too - not all of which can be accomplished in a strictly online environment.

I'll be following this story closely.

Browsing at a newsstand recently, I couldn't help noticing the cover story of the July/August issue of The Atlantic. "Your child says she's trans. She wants hormones and surgery. She's 13." To make a long story short, I ended up buying the magazine. And reading the article in its entirety - 16 pages of text, double columns, so quite long as magazine articles go. I found it fair and balanced, thorough and thought-provoking. But don't take my word for it - read it for yourself, if you are so inclined:

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2018/07/when-a-child-says-shes-trans/561749/

I was floored by some of the vitriolic responses I saw, even on sites where I normally find the commentators' arguments well-reasoned and quite often am in agreement with them too - here are a few examples:

https://jezebel.com/whats-jesse-singals-fucking-deal-1826930495

https://boingboing.net/2018/06/19/the-atlantic-again-concern-tro.html

https://slate.com/human-interest/2018/06/desistance-and-detransitioning-stories-value-cis-anxiety-over-trans-lives.html

You'll notice that Singal does say that a majority of people who transition during their adult years are happy with their decisions; he also says that many youth are too, and that if the gender dysphoria is very pervasive and originated very early in life, it's highly likely that the transition will be a success and that the transitioned will have no regrets. His main "sins" in the eyes of his critics, it seems to me, are (1) He's a cis-gender male; (2) He publicizes the fact that some children and teens do either regret irreversible or difficult-to-reverse procedures and treatments at a later date, or explore some of the possibilities of transitioning and gender reassignment but ultimately decide that it's not the route they want to go. Is caution really such a terrible thing to advocate, particularly given that these kids are minors and it can be pretty hard to understand what's going on in a kid's head and heart, even if it's your own child?

I don't know what Jesse Singal's family situation is, nor do I recall reading anything else he's written (though that may soon change). I do know, though, as a cisgender person in a family and community with a number of transfolk in it that families too are very much affected by the decisions of the transpeople themselves. Shouldn't we be allowed to weigh in on these questions too?