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in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, S ep te m be r 23 ,2 02 1 | 6 ABOUT US This newspaper, published every Thursday, is a division of the Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 70 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants are urged to bring their concerns to the attention of the newspaper and, if not satisfied, write The National NewsMedia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca insidehalton@metroland.com facebook.com/OakvilleBeav @OakvilleBeaver WHO WE ARE VP, Regional Publisher Kelly Montague Director of Content Lee Ann Waterman Regional General Manager Jason Pehora Regional Managing Editor Catherine O'Hara Managing Editor Karen Miceli Director of Distribution Charlene Hall Circulation Manager Kim Mossman Director of Production Mark Dills Regional Production Manager Manny Garcia Directors of Advertising Cindi Campbell and Ryan Maraj CONTACT US Oakville Beaver 901 Guelph Line Burlington, ON L7R 3N8 Phone: 905-845-3824 Classifieds: 1-800-263-6480 Advertising: 289-293-0620 Delivery For all delivery inquiries, please e-mail kmossman@metroland.com or call 905-631-6095. Letters to the editor Send letters to insidehalton@metroland.com. All letters must be fewer than 320 words and include your name and telephone number for verification purposes. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject letters. Published letters will appear in print and/or online at insidehalton.com OPINION TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT INSIDEHALTON.COM The word "empathy" comes up a lot when talk- ing about mental health and supporting others, and Dr. Brené Brown has be- come a leading expert in this area. She emphasizes how empathy -- putting our- selves in others' shoes -- drives connection and is key to having non-judg- mental conversations. She also cautions us about using two little words, saying, "Rarely does an empathic response begin with 'at least'." First of all, "at least" is likely well intended. We may feel that it would be helpful and take someone's mind off the negative, but what we see as reassurance and distraction could easi- ly be perceived as minimiz- ing and dismissing. Take something like "I know work is stressful right now, but at least you have a job." What we would probably be trying to do by saying this is switch the fo- cus to something positive and hope they feel better. But think about what's im- plied by this "at least" state- ment: • The fact that they have a job is more important than the fact that they feel stressed. • Feeling stressed isn't OK. • You don't want to talk about their stress. In other words, grati- tude for having a job should negate anything else they are feeling. But, it's not an either-or situa- tion. It's up to us to recognize that whatever combina- tion of feelings they are having is valid. So, what to do with the "at least" temptation? First of all, be on the lookout for it; you don't need to say it just because it comes into your mind. Then remind yourself to focus on what others are experiencing, not what you wish they were experienc- ing. Choose to give a sup- portive response, some- thing like, "It sounds like you're stressed. Tell me more about it," or "It's un- derstandable that you're stressed." Remember that saying "at least" won't make any- thing magically go away. As Dr. Brown says, "Rarely can a response make some- thing better. What makes something better is con- nection." Melanie McGregor is the communications and advancement specialist at the Canadian Mental Health Association Halton Region Branch, which provides mental health/ addiction community sup- port and education. Visit www.halton.cmha.ca for more information and follow @cmhahalton on Twitter. AVOID THE 'AT LEAST' RESPONSE TRYING TO FOCUS ON THE POSITIVE CAN OFTEN MINIMIZE SOMEONE'S FEELINGS, WRITES MELANIE MCGREGOR The nagging issue of ex- cessive mortgage debt held by Canadians continues, with new information that the risk of excess borrow- ing is getting worse. This has significant im- plications for homeowners who might get caught car- rying too much debt. Also, there is considerable risk to the Canadian economy if this excess debt contrib- utes to a housing bubble burst. The housing mortgage risk is a result of the 'per- fect storm.' The pandemic altered the way we live. Many adults started to work at home, children transi- tioned to at-home learning and suddenly, families wanted a larger house. Add in historic low mort- gage rates, and suddenly a more expensive house was more affordable. Demand and the price of houses went through the roof. That is the state of the current real estate market. The question is what might happen in the future. A key to a stable real es- tate market is low interest rates. If rates start to in- crease, affordability will become an issue. Some families will struggle with increased mortgage pay- ments. Interest rates rise and fall in part by actions of the Bank of Canada. If the bank wants to slow down economic activity, that can be done by increasing in- terest rates. On Sept. 8, the Bank of Canada announced there would be no change to the underlying interest rates. My thought is it is just a matter of time before inter- est rates rise. Excessive mortgage debt continues to be a risk for many Canadians. Peter Watson, of Watson Investments MBA, CFP, R.F.P., CIM, FCSI offers a weekly financial planning column, Dollars & Sense. He can be contacted through www.watsonin- vestments.com. EXCESSIVE MORTGAGE DEBT A FINANCIAL RISK MANY HOMEOWNERS FACING NEWFOUND BURDEN THESE DAYS, WRITES PETER WATSON PETER WATSON Column A hawk visits Tannery Park. Do you have a great local photo you'd like to share? Send it to sleblanc@metroland.com, along with a brief description. Henry Thissen photo SNAPSHOT MELANIE MCGREGOR Column SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AT INSIDEHALTON.COM