The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

11 | The IFP -H alton H ills | T hursday,M ay 7,2020 theifp.ca 905-877-8262 Noel Stoyles SALES REPRESENTATIVE DIRECT: (905) 866-8923 OFFICE: (905) 873-6111 (877) 306-IPRO (4776) 158 Guelph St., Unit 4 Georgetown, ON L7G 4A6noelstoyles@gmail.com To advertise in this Full Colour Directory, please email Kelli kkosonic@theifp.ca or call 905-234-1018 GetWhatYou're Askin GoWith Baskin. Marc Baskin SaleS RepReSentativeSaleS RepReSentative Cell: 905-867-3280 Email:mbaskin@remaxcentre.ca www.gtown.ca Your Real Estate Resource With 40 Year's Experience. Heather Morison Broker - ASA CIA CLHMS hmorison@royallepage.ca 905-873-4266 www.REresource.ca 519-853-0924 PETER DYMOND Sales Representative DEMAND THE DYMOND STANDARD 905-456-1000 REALTY SERVICES INC., BROKERAGE www.PeterDymond.com Elaine Corris Sales Representative 647-241-9927 ElaineCorrisSells@gmail.com www.elainecorrissells.ca REAL ESTATE DIRECTORY 324 Guelph Street, Georgetown ON L7G 4B5 Direct: 905.866.8766 Office: 905.877.8262 slpaglia@royallepage.ca www.sherylpaglia.ca Sheryl Paglia Sales Representative Since losing her son to an accidental opioid over- dose, Betty-Lou Kristy has dedicated her life to help- ing fix gaps in the mental health and addictions sys- tems. As the coronavirus pan- demic persists, her focus and determination hasn't wavered. The Georgetown woman is currently part of a provincial COVID-19 ta- ble geared to mental health and addictions, where she's sharing her insights as a bereaved mother who's been in recovery for almost two decades from alcohol, multiple drug addictions, trauma and mental health issues. "I was very happy to be invited to that table be- cause I'm the only person there that comes from the perspective of lived experi- ence," said Kristy, who's al- so the director of the Cen- tre for Innovation in Peer Support, which works lo- cally to integrate peer sup- port services in the mental health and substance use/ addictions system. The provincial table is cognizant of how the pan- demic is going to impact people's mental health in general, she noted -- even those who perhaps didn't struggle in this depart- ment before. "The stressors of this (pandemic) alone are going to be phenomenal the lon- ger it goes on, particularly with so many people out of work right now," she said. "We're just going to see a massive escalation in men- tal health issues." For those like Kristy who have a history of men- tal health and addictions, she said there's even more urgency as people continue to be isolated at home. "While I'm experienced enough to keep myself in recovery during this and not relapse, there will be many who aren't because being isolated is one of the worst things for them," she said. "Their mental health could unravel. How many people will run to self-med- icating or relapse in their addiction due to the stress of all this?" Kristy also expressed concern for individuals coping with trauma or grief -- a path she's famil- iar with since losing her son Pete in 2001 to an acci- dental opioid overdose at the age of 25. "Losing your job, losing your freedom, losing your security could retrigger a lot of trauma in people and grief/loss responses, and if they're not aware of that, they might wonder what's happening to them," she said. This isn't Kristy's first time providing input at the provincial level on the top- ics of mental health and ad- dictions. Most recently, she consulted on the Ontario government's document entitled 'Roadmap to Well- ness: A Plan to Build Onta- rio's Mental Health and Addictions System.' On the ground locally, Kristy and the Centre for Innovation in Peer Support -- which recently amal- gamated with TEACH (Teach, Empower, Advo- cate for Community Health), housed at Support & Housing-Halton -- are working to serve clients from afar during the pan- demic with peer support via phone calls, texts and virtual groups. "We didn't shut down any services. We've turned everything virtual," she ex- plained. "We're dealing di- rectly with the most vul- nerable who are struggling with mental health and ad- dictions." The following are some of the services available for local residents seeking mental health and addic- tions support during the pandemic and beyond: · Crisis Outreach and Support Team (COAST): 1- 877-825-9011 · Distress Centre Hal- ton: 905-877-1211 · Centre for Innovation in Peer Support (TEACH), noncrisis peer support warm line: 289-644-1480 (staffed Monday to Friday, noon to 5 p.m.) · One-Link -- a single point of access for referrals to 10 addiction and mental health service providers funded by the Mississauga Halton Local Health Inte- gration Network: 1-844-216- 7411, www.one-link.ca. BEREAVED MOM ADVOCATES FOR MENTAL HEALTH, ADDICTIONS SUPPORT MELANIE HENNESSEY mhennessey@ metroland.com Georgetown's Betty-Lou Kristy giving an opening speech recently for Minister of Health Christine Elliott. Betty-Lou Kristy photo NEWS