Braving the Waves

Episode Notes After International Women’s Day on March 8th, this week’s episode is inspired by America Ferrera’s speech in the Barbie movie. In the format of a pantoum poetic form, which repeats lines in succeeding stanzas, the contradictions women face are perpetually repeated and in conversation with each other—overlapping and taking on new meanings that simultaneously clarify and confuse, simil...

Episode Notes Our poem and episode today explore longing for words when we don’t have any. One of our deepest aches, especially while navigating the depth of pain or peak of joy, is to have words at our disposal to give shape and meaning to these experiences—for ourselves, our notebooks, our poems, and our explanations to someone who hasn’t experienced what we’re trying to communicate, but is offe...

Episode Notes Our poem takes a deep dive into love today, specifically all the things it might and might not be. How far outside the box can we take the concept of love, especially on the heels of Valentine’s Day and Family Day? Since love is such a critical element of our well-being and mental health, this poem offers a few of my thoughts on what love means, to both broaden and deepen how we thin...

Episode Notes Today, we’re looking at the acronym HALT through a poem. HALT stands for “hunger, anger, lonely, tired,” and it is often used as a method for checking in with yourself. For example, when you’re feeling activated or dysregulated, stop (halt) and ask yourself if one of these categories is suffering. The intention is to support folks in getting to the root of what they’re feeling, allev...

Episode Notes This week’s poem looks at a moment of recognition that a familiar, intimate pain is coming—one that can make us more vulnerable to various forms of relapse. Through the personification of January and March, this episode is a personal one from me, exploring the pain of remembering a bone-deep pain and what it’s like to prepare for it, such as the anniversary of a loss, birthday, death...

Episode Notes This week’s episode looks at some of the ways anxiety shows up in our minds, bodies, and souls—specifically the elements of it that aren’t as frequently spoken about. February 1st/2nd also marked the halfway point between the winter solstice and the spring equinox, which is celebrated through many different cultural traditions. This episode discusses how even with seasonal shifts—esp...

Episode Notes This week we’re looking at both a childhood and adult memory, between which is a comparison trap and the growing awareness of it. Both moments are set in the same place—among the display rooms of Ikea. This episode and poem explore how easy it is to construct caricatures or imaginary people from our surroundings who are either better or less than ourselves (particularly the former)....

We're so excited to share the first episode of 2024 with you. In the setting of a cozy kitchen, this poem captures our moments on social media with a twist. It explores the “Favourites” feature on Instagram, namely one way in which to use it mindfully: curating your relationship with social media. For example, carefully choosing a recipe of art, music, joy, passion, humour, social justice, activis...

Episode Notes This poem is our last of 2023, and because we didn’t have a submission for today, I wanted to write something that will carry you through the next few weeks. Many of us are venturing into and/or celebrating various holidays, and this poem offers a reminder—for you and me—that whatever we feel amid this season, is well within its right to need space. The season is rich, but not just w...

Episode Notes Today’s poem brings us into a relationship between someone struggling and a friend they find support in speaking with. Because these two people don’t live close to one another—and haven’t met in person—the friend has offered their text chain as a space to write, share, be vulnerable, and journal, even if the friend isn’t always able to reply. This poem is in the voice of the person s...

Episode Notes Today’s poem reflects something that’s been on my heart—the paradox between “tomorrow isn’t promised” and “there’s no rush.” As a young person with dreams, this is difficult to navigate at times, especially since I’ve personally experienced the deaths of several young people in my life, and we’re witnessing mass youth death across the globe. With this in mind, I’ve caught myself aski...

Episode Notes This week’s poem pilots us into an argument between a child and their father that has soured, where he has reverted to hurtful, personal attacks. The voice in this poem carries us deeper into this instance—the child’s acknowledgement of overwhelm; a moment of mindful connecting to their five senses; and a deep compassion and awareness of the seed of their father’s hurt. At the end of...

Episode Notes This week’s poem welcomes us into a family during the years-long process of writing a will, which in turn, requires a hovering awareness of death. This family’s experience asks us to redefine what hovering means, and how we choose to greet something that we’ve been taught to fear or feel uncomfortable about. It emphasizes the need to make space for conversations, thoughts, feelings,...

Episode Notes This week’s poem excavates the complicated nature of receiving and replying to messages from someone who knows we're struggling and is lovingly checking in on us. It unpacks the nooks and crannies of this dynamic—such as the tension between gratitude and somatic reactions—and why responding is not as simple as it seems.  Here is a snippet of Stuffed Silence: I’m impotent. Can’t gener...

Episode Notes This week’s poem expands a simple moment—gathering breakfast early in the morning of October 28th—by juxtaposing it with deeper reflections. Here is a snippet of Morning Moons:  The blueberries thawed, too. So even in a muted blackout, the moon is relentlessly bold, blood cascades thick, and pistachios rupture shells— ripe, rich, raw, and ready. Listen in to this week's episode to he...

Episode Notes Welcome to Season 2 of the Braving the Waves Podcast! This season, we're adding a new layer to storytelling: an anonymous memory box.  To complement the storytelling program at  Unsinkable  ( www.weareunsinkable.com ) &  Resolvve's  ( www.resolvve.ca ) work supporting students, Mikaela will be offering another way to Brave the Waves: crafting words for moments that feel...

Episode Notes We've reached the end of the first season of Braving the Waves and we will be continuing onward with a new format very soon. But for now, it is back to your regularly scheduled show notes! "See, I told you that you could do it."    This week, Mikaela speaks with Stephanie, an elementary school educator in Ontario. When not teaching, she enjoys cosplaying at conventions, wat...

Episode Notes We're back with the penultimate episode of this season of Braving the Waves. This week, Mikaela speaks with Arielle, a young woman who grew up in a small town and lived a fairly simple life until she reached adulthood. A mom, a wife and a Human Resources Specialist who has decided it's time to share her horrific story with the world. A loving mother who will do anything in her power...

Episode Notes Kelli's six-word story: “Acceptance allows you to move forward.” Listen in to hear more of Kelli’s story! “Back then I asked “Why me? Why did this happen to me?” And now, it’s “Why not me?” How can I use my story and telling my story to others, in a way where they can take something away from my recovery, lessons, and insights.” This week, Mikaela speaks with Kelli Chu, an Adversity...

Episode Notes Pamela's six-word story: “Peace. Courage. Proud. Independence. Support. Dream." Listen in to hear more of Pamela's story! “The best part of our stories is that I tend to pull out stuff in an effort to relate to people close to me, people going through things, people sharing, or people I’m working with, and I think that’s the beautiful thing about life and keeping our stories nic...

Episode Notes Ryan's six-word story: “Regular person struggles through difficult times.” Listen in to hear more of Ryan's story! “One of the biggest things about learning experiences is that they come at the expense of someone else, because that’s how we truly learn. As a man that’s also really important to understand.” This week, Mikaela speaks with Ryan Forsyth, an award-winning mental health sp...

Episode Notes Jan's six-word story: “Persevere through the toughest of times.” Listen in to hear more of Jan's story! “You are your children’s champion & hero—you are more than enough.” This week, Mikaela speaks with Jan Stewart, a highly regarded mental health governance expert and advocate. Growing up in New York and moving to Toronto after marrying a Canadian, she was untouched by major adv...

Episode Notes Rohit's six-word story: "Comfort. Resilience. Love. Growth. Learning. Sadness."    Listen in to hear more of Rohit's story!    "It’s enough to put something on a piece of paper. Don’t fabricate your words—base them on true, raw, authentic experiences. They’re the best. That’s your story."    This week, Mikaela speaks with Rohit Doel. Rohit is an Autistic Content C...

Episode Notes Hailey's six-word story: "The outside never captures what shines within."**** Listen in to hear more of Hailey's story! "Nothing is ever linear. Just because we hear a story from beginning to what feels like a potential end—it isn't an end. There isn't just 'now I'm good and none of these thoughts will ever come back into my mind'." This week, Mikaela speaks with...

Episode Notes Angelica's six-word stories: "Learning to live with clinical depression" + "Overcoming adversity and finding my purpose"**** Listen in to hear more of Angelica's story! "If you're going through a difficult time right now, it is going to end eventually. The sun will come again." This week, Mikaela speaks with Angelica Galluzzo, a mental health advocate, T...