WRITING THE STORY
"It's important to always take time to get the facts right.""
Laura takes pride in making sure that she has enough information to get the facts across correctly. This was crucial when covering live Toronto news for community papers. This includes closely following and covering these cases: former Mayor Rob Ford's ongoing Drug scandal, The 2011 Smellie Murder case, Occupy Toronto protests, Toronto City Council Big Oil & Pipline debate and Toronto Mayoral elections.
Laura has had the pleasure of covering the press conference that announced Rogers Sportsnet's 5.2 billion dollar NHL broadcast deal as Sports Beat Reporter for the Ryersonian. During this time she also contributed to the health and science news and business news sections. She has had work published in Sports Xpress, Stoney Creek News and the Hamilton Spectator.
OTHER WRITING EXAMPLES
Not Your Average Straight-A Student
Laura Lehman
2015
He was there on the sidelines in his tracksuit at the 2012 Olympics London, England ready to step in.
If Nathan Garfuik became unable to compete, his alternate, Kevin Lytwyn, would have gotten the opportunity he has been working towards all his life.
But the Olympics is not the only thing Lytwyn is working towards. At the same time, the straight-A student is also working on completing a mechanical engineering degree at McMaster University while training for the 2016 Olympic games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
“Good grades are important to me. I try my best to maintain a high average,” says Lytwyn.
While training with several other senior level gymnasts at the University of Calgary Gymnastics Centre, McMaster University has allowed Lytwyn to take courses towards his degree at University of Calgary.
The Hamilton, Ont. native has been training out west under the leadership of his coach, Jason Woodnick, since 2012.
“Kevin trains anywhere from 3-5 hours a day six days a week,” says Woodnick.
Along with 25-30 hours of gymnastics training, Lytwyn commits to approximately eight hours of school each week.
“Kevin has not only been gifted with talents of athletics, he has always been very smart and wanted to attend university. He has a very low tolerance for failure and that makes him work very hard to succeed,” his older brother, Craig, says, “He originally wanted to be a doctor.”
Lytwyn’s gymnastics team was .5 off of sending a team to London. But being this close to reaching his dream didn’t set the 24-year-old back, it has just motivated him even more.
This past year when Lytwyn competed in the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, his team came in 3rd place. He also brought home three individual medals in rings, high bar and parallel bars.
His family went to Scotland to watch alongside some of his childhood friends, the Santarellis.
“Watching Kevin wear the maple leaf on his back as he was being piped in was a proud moment for me. I was proud that I was able to see our athletes compete at such an elite level and that I was able to watch a long-time friend participate in something that he is so passionate about and has worked so hard to achieve,” says Gregory Santarelli.
Growing up down the street from the Lytwyns, the Santarellis remember him as being a very energetic kid who loved the outdoors.
“He always loved bouncing on the trampoline doing flips and such,” says Santarelli.
It all began at Hamilton East Boys and Girls Club when Lytwyn was nine. A gymnastics coach there noticed his potential.
“He went for an evaluation at Burlington BGs Gymnastics Club in Burlington. After that there was no looking back,” says Peter Lytwyn, Kevin’s father.
15 years later, his passion for gymnastics has taken him to Olympic competitive level.
“Over the years he’s been all around Canada to compete including the Yukon, Australia, Mexico, Germany, Japan, Slovenia, Portugal, Belgium, Scotland, China, and the USA,” says Peter.
He currently competes in floor, rings, vault, parallel bars, and high bar.
“There are many things I love about the sport, but a few things I particularly love about it are that it keeps me fit and healthy and that I get to travel all over the world and meet awesome people,” says Lytwyn.
This May he will be competing for the Nationals in Quebec. He will also be in Toronto this summer for the Pan Am Games. When he isn’t local, his family and friends follow his competitions online.
“Kevin's schedule is that it is what is required to be an Olympic level gymnast. Over 20 hours in the gym is needed because there are so many different events for Kevin to work on. Not only does he practice the five events he competes in, but he works a great deal on his flexibility, his conditioning, and his trampoline skills so that he has amazing air awareness. That's eight different events that he has to work on every week. When you are at Kevin's level and your goal is to make the Olympics you have to immerse yourself in gymnastics,” says Woodnick.
Lytwyn’s training schedule does not allow for much spare time but he knows how to stay balanced. Growing up, Kevin was homeschooled until high school. This allowed him to manage daily training around his school schedule.
“From a young age Kevin has been good at organizing his time to maximum benefit and is a disciplined person. This enabled him to excel at both school and the gym,” says Liz Lytwyn.
He would always work on a credit or two during the summer months to lighten his workload for the upcoming school year. His mother says he also enjoyed going to Saltfleet District High School in Stoney Creek for some of his highschool credits while training in Burlington, Ont.
“Kevin is a perfectionist. He has consistently earned high marks in high school and university,” says Liz, who was also the kids’ primary homeschool teacher.
His coach says that Kevin is the type of person who likes to say busy. He says that even while preparing for his next competition, university courses allow him to take his mind off the gym and focus on something else for a while.
“Kevin does a great job balancing his gymnastics life with his regular life,” says Woodnick.
When he isn’t at the gym or school, Lytwyn says he uses his free time to go up to the mountains out west and go skiing or hiking with friends.
“Although I'm busy I do try to have some sort of social life,” he says.
His brothers Ewen and Craig, and his sister Christie-Lin, say with no hesitation that he is a well-rounded individual. They also say for someone so successful, he is humble and down-to-earth.
“Kevin does enjoy being social and is good at balancing when to be fun and when to take things seriously,” says Craig.
“He has an admirable amount of drive and commitment, not only to his sport, but the rest of his life, too. He’ll tell you that gymnastics takes up a lot of his time and school is more of a ‘recreational’ activity for him. But despite that ‘recreational’ status, he still drives for excellence. Anything less than that is a disappointment to him,” says Christie-Lin.
The thing that remains constant throughout Lytwyn’s gymnastics, academics and social life is that he is motivated and knows what he has to do to get where he wants to be.
“He isn't someone who needs to be pushed,” says Woodnick, “He pushes himself to be great...sometimes he pushes himself too hard and it's my job to make sure he takes a step back to relax and refocus when I see that he needs it.”
Kevin has his mind set on the 2016 Olympics and is determined to earn his degree in engineering by 2018.
“I believe he can, and will, achieve both of those things,” says Woodnick.
Small Town, Big Dreams
Laura Lehman
2015
Growing up in Grunthal, Man. before the Winnipeg Jets franchise existed, Lucas Froese decided at a young age that his favourite hockey city would be the next closest place- Toronto.
Lucas' parents were not surprised when their son decided to leave their small town of less than one thousand people to play hockey at Ryerson University in 2013. He was excited to study business management at Ryerson and to get to play hockey at the old Maple Leaf Gardens.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have always been Lucas' team. “It's always been a good argument between us,” says Ron Froese, Lucas' father.
“When the kids were growing up and the Winnipeg Jets weren't around yet the Toronto Maple Leafs would get the most T.V coverage,” he says.
Lucas played minor hockey in Grunthal and the south east Manitoba region until he was in highschool. He played junior hockey in Winnipeg and Saskatchewan.
Lucas' mother, Yolanda Froese, says that while most people who grow up in a small town like herself would be scared moving to a big city, it was never a fear for Lucas. It was a dream.
“He always wanted to leave home. I was scared, but he was excited. So we let him go,” says Yolanda.
Ron says they were a little worried as parents because they thought it would be a big adjustment for him.
“City life is a lot different from here. We're not only from a small town... we're from the country,” he says.
The Froese family lives on a farm and used to have hogs. Ron and his three sons, Ian, 23, Lucas, 22, and Jeff, 20, all used to help on the farm.
“When Lucas was little, he would come home from school and help his father with chores and feed the hogs,” says Yolanda.
“I remember helping with the chores and the hogs,” Ian laughs.
Even though there are lots of good memories in the country, he doesn't think his brother will ever move back to small town Manitoba for good.
“I presume he will stay in Toronto and play hockey at a low professional level. He is an independent individual. He has gone after his dreams and succeeded by and large playing in a big city that he has always loved,” says Ian.
Ian believes his brother adjusted well to the move because he moved away when he was in highschool to Saskatchewan to go to Notre Dame, a private catholic hockey academy.
“In my opinion, that paved the way for him to move even farther away from home. It made it less difficult to move to Toronto. I have never gotten the sense that he was homesick or anything,” Ian says.
Robert Visca, a third year on the Ryerson Rams hockey team became friends with Lucas right away at training camp in August at Princeton University last season which helped him feel comfortable quickly.
He knows firsthand what it was like for Lucas to move to Toronto.
“Lucas' hometown is bigger than mine actually. I'm from Everett, Ontario. In my town we only have a post office and a convenience store. Nothing else,” says Visca.
“Lucas says that Grunthal has this one upscale spot where you can go out for a high-end meal and a nice time. So we joke about it sometimes when he says he misses 'the bistro'. It's humourous for us because for me it's a 25 minute drive to find a high-end meal in my home town,” he says.
The two small town boys thoroughly love the city even though it is different than what they are used to.
“We do love it here. But once in a while it is nice to go to home and get some greenery or go down to the waterfront when we need a break from the pace of downtown,” says Visca.
Mitch Gallant, a veteran on the Rams hockey team, says that he thinks Lucas has acclimatized to Toronto life.
“He doesn't dress like he's from Grunthal, Manitoba anymore. He has been becoming more and more Torontonian every year,” he says. “When Lucas moved to Toronto and joined the team he was pretty quiet. He has become more vocal since living here but he has never complained about anything in Toronto.
Visca remembers one of the first times that Lucas was immersed in downtown Toronto nightlife. It was one of his first weeks in the city and a few of the guys on the team went out one night.
“We were all dancing and Lucas said, 'Guys, do not leave me. I don't know where I am,'” says Visca, “Sure enough, next thing you know we can't find Lucas. We had lost him. A while later we found him off dancing by himself. I'm sure if we had've lost him he could've found a cab to get home or something,” he laughs.
“I've been there as well so I know what he's talking about...all the people, the lights, the action, the subway system. It's a city that never sleeps,” says Ron.
The Froese family tries to make a point of coming to Toronto to watch Lucas play hockey once before Christmas and once after each season. That's the only time he sees his family until he goes home in the summer to work in Grunthal with his dad and brother Jeff doing construction.
“Grunthal is a small town with a bank, a school, restaurants, four churches and a main street. That's it. They also opened a bistro about two or three years ago. My boys love that place. They eat there often,” says Yolanda.
The bistro is the only thing that Lucas has admitted he misses about Grunthal.
“He often says how much he likes Toronto. It helps hockey is going well and schooling is going well,” says Ron.
Lucas will be staying with the Ryerson Rams next season. He still has a few years of eligibility with the team and his family doesn't seem to think his city life will end when his eligibility does.
“I think he will stay in Toronto even after he graduates from Ryerson,” says Yolanda.
Sleep is for the weak
Laura Lehman
2014
After an incredible performance at the Winter Invitational Competition, the Ryerson figure skating team will only be granted one rest day before practices continue leading up to year-end finals.
The figure skating team won their first ever gold medal in synchronized skating in the competition on Thursday, Jan. 29 and brought home a gold in the Novice Women Short Program on Friday, Jan. 30 at the University of Toronto's Varsity Arena. Both medals were huge victories for the Ryerson figure skating team.
Even though the medals were a great addition to Ryerson's collection, with Ontario University Athletics (OUA) finals in just two weeks, there isn't much time for rest before the next competition.
“The team only gets one day off. We will get some feedback, see what the judges liked and didn't like, and work on it,” says Rebecca Rogers, a third-year Ryerson student.
Rogers is an exception, though, as she will be resting for the next 6-8 weeks. She is out for the remainder of the season, including the OUA finals on Feb. 17 and 18, after tearing her lower abdomen in practice the day before the Winter Invitational.
“I have to rest and take it easy. Especially with figure skating, with the positions we do on the ice, if you're not one hundred per cent before getting back out there after an injury you could hurt yourself even more,” says Rogers.
Everyone else on the team will get Saturday to themselves and then will meet back with the others for off-ice training on Sunday and on-ice practice on Monday morning.
Cole Vezina, a first year Ryerson free skater, says he stretches and drinks a lot of water on his day off. He says he will be relaxing not only his muscles but also his mind on the first Saturday in weeks without figure skating.
“It's very important to rest, especially in skating, to give your muscles time to recuperate,” says Vezina.
“It's also the Australian Open right now so I will get to watch Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams play tonight,” he says, “Since there is a time difference, the tennis match will be on T.V late so I'm going to stay up and watch that and then sleep in tomorrow. And then tomorrow, I will watch the men's final, rest and drink lots of water,” says Vezina.
For Lisa Jensen, one of the co-captains of the team, the one day off is a day to catch up on school work.
“When we have a day off, we take advantage of it because we work hard,” says Jensen.
Jensen says her body isn't used to resting during the figure skating season. She says the skaters' internal clocks have adjusted to the daily early morning practices.
“I'll sleep in... to seven o'clock. That's sleeping in for me. I'll do my school work and then be ready to get back at it Sunday. Even though we got gold in synchro, everyone improves so much in the three weeks before OUAs. So we have to work hard to be able to do it again. We really can't go out or relax until OUAs are done,” says Jensen.
Christina Pulla, who received the gold for the team in the Novice Women Short Program, is a fourth-year nursing student at Ryerson. She says she doesn't remember the last time she slept in.
“I wish I could sleep in! Tomorrow, on our day off, I will be up at my hospital placement at Scarborough General Hospital in general surgery at 7 a.m.,” says Pulla.
“But as it is my day off from figure skating, I will also do some stretching to relieve my strained body from the stress it's been under lately,” says Pulla, “Oh, and I will eat a lot. I usually am too nervous to eat pre-competition. It will hit me tonight after the competition,” she laughs.
Pulla says that between her school work, placement at the hospital, skating practices and her part-time job, it's rare that she has a full day off to do nothing but relax.
“If I did get a full day off to do nothing, I would sleep and catch-up on some shows I've missed... like Suits or Revenge, for sure. And Lisa... I know she'd be watching Friends on Netflix if she wasn't catching up on school work,” Pulla jokes.
Head coach Tiffany Elliot agrees that a rest day is certainly important for recovery and stress relief. She also believes that there isn't enough time for more than one rest day, as there is a lot of practicing that needs to be done before the year-end finals.
“I do think we are ready for OUAs, but I also think there are some things we need to practice to get more points,” says Elliot.
She says that the team will be focusing on incorporating a few more skills into their competitive routines at practice. If they take too much time off, she fears they won't be prepared to get another gold medal in the synchronized skating event at the finals. There will be time for the team to rest after the OUA finals when the season has come to an end.
Until then, those episodes of Suits may have to wait.
Ryerson Receives First Ever Gold Medal in Synchro
Laura Lehman
2015
On Thursday January, 29that the Winter Invitational the Ryerson figure skating team won their first gold medal for synchronized skating in Ryerson University history.
The two-day competition was held at University of Toronto's Varsity Arena.
“We have never even received a medal in synchro, let alone come in first,” says Lisa Jensen, one of the co-captains of the Ryerson figure skating team.
Ryerson won the gold medal with only thirteen synchro skaters. Usually, there would be fifteen synchronized skaters for Ryerson but in this competition they were missing two.
Julia Withers went to the doctor early Friday with flu-like symptoms. She was supposed to be in two pairs events. It was unclear whether she was fighting a flu bug or affected by food poisoning.
She sat out and rested most of the day, but fought through her sickness like a champion and skated inPairs Gold Creative Dance with co-captain of the team Karen Urquhart at the end of the day.
Rebecca Rogers, a third-year Ryerson student, unfortunately could not compete as she is out for 6-8 weeks with a high-grade partial tear in her lower abdomen.
“I was just practicing on Wednesday and stepped out of a double loop on the ice and twisted my body a weird way. I've never stepped that way before and I've certainly never felt my body twist that way before,” Rogers says.
Medical staff at the Mattamy Athletic Centre recommended Rogers to go to the hospital on Wednesday to make sure it wasn't a full abdominal tear or an appendix issue. They also had to break the news to her that she wouldn't be able to compete the next day in the Winter Invitational, or the rest of the season.
“I have to rest and take it easy. Especially with figure skating, with the positions we do on the ice, if you're not 100 per cent before getting back out there after an injury you could hurt yourself even more,” says Rogers.
Rebecca had a solo in the Senior Silver Free Skate event, but after her injury Wednesday, one of the rookies on the team Ashley Pannozzo stepped in for her. Head Coach Tiffany Elliot says she called Pannozzo at 8 p.m. Thursday night to tell her she would be taking Rogers' place.
Pannozzo placed 7th in the event.
Even though Rogers couldn't skate in the synchro event, her face lit up when she talked about her teammates obtaining their first synchro gold.
“Last year we skated the best we ever have and we came in 6th. This year, we skated even better. We came in first in the synchro event. That has never been done at Ryerson before! We have never even placed top three in a synchro event before. Not only that, we won by two whole points,”she says.
The Ryerson team received a score of 49.42 in the synchro gold event. The team believes head coach Tiffany Elliot is to thank for this accomplishment and milestone in Ryerson figure skating history.
“We are all very thankful for Tiffany,” says Rogers. “I can tell why she got hired as head coach this year,” she says.
Jensen, who is in her fifth and final year with the Ryerson figure skating team, couldn't agree more.
“When Tiffany came in as head coach her main focus was synchronized skating. She has a great synchro background and you can see that” says Jensen.
Elliot says she studied the system beforehand. She went into the competition knowing where the team could maximize points and knew where they could do especially well. She says that they executed everything that they had practiced as a team in front of the judges.
“Oh wow, I was extremely proud. I don't think any of us expected to do as well as we did. I have to give it to the girls, they did amazing,” says Elliot.
Elliot also made a point of saying how proud she was of Christina Pulla's performance on Friday, a skater in her fourth year at Ryerson.
“Christina won gold this morning in the Novice Women Short Program which is really tough to do. I am so proud of her and what she did today,” says Elliot.
The OUA championships will be held in just a few weeks on February 17th and 18th at the University of Guelph.
The team is aware of how hard they will have to keep practicing in order to place in synchro again.
“Even though we got gold in synchro this time, everyone improves so much in the couple weeks before OUAs. So we have to work hard to be able to do it again. We can't go out or relax until OUAs are done,” says Jensen.
The Ryerson team placed4th overall in the competition with 47 points, falling short ten points of Guelph in 3rd place. University of Toronto placed 1st with 72 points and Western landed 2nd with 71 points. There were 11 universities participating.
“I think we are ready for OUAs. I know what we will need to add to get more points,” says Elliot.
Ditch the Knits
Laura Lehman
2014
Spring is around the corner and many people are hitting the gym or getting outside to get summer beach body ready.
But a number of Canadians put too much pressure on their bodies too quickly when they start exercising in preparationto show off their skin. This can lead to overtraining injuries and severe inflammation that can put a halt on their workouts all together.
A 2010 report from Statistics Canada states that an estimated 4.3 million Canadians aged 12 or older from 2009-2010 suffered an injury severe enough to limit their usual daily activities. This represents 15 per cent of the population of Canada.
Two out of three of these injuries were linked to sports among adolescents and nearly half of these injuries were sports-related among adults ages 20-64.
Kathleen Trotter, a Toronto-based personal trainer and fitness Globe and Mail columnist believes that many injuries can be avoided if athletes gradually progress their workouts.
“The biggest mistake people make is going too hard, too fast. Connected to that, they usually don't have a realistic goal. People say, 'Next week I'm going to get fit!' So they go hard for five days, then they get injured, tired, discouraged... and they stop. Even a runner who is an experienced runner, can't go out and run a half marathon after months of not running. You'll get injured. I'd start with afive kilometre run.”
If an athlete gets burned out, not only does it take the fun and excitement out of their training, but it can be extremely dangerous to the body. Overtraining can lead to fatigue, injury and even insomnia.
“Doing too much doesn't allow your body the recovery time needed to rebuild or repair muscle fibers, which is essentially how we build strength. Building in adequate rest is just as important as scheduling workouts,” says Jessica Smith, fitness instructor, trainer, wellness coach and SHAPE Magazine contributor.
People who exercise vigorously need a day of rest once every 7-10 days to rebuild the muscle. Eating protein-rich foods such as fish, lean meats, protein powders, seeds and nuts are essential for muscle building and muscle repair. Getting 7-9 hours of sleep each night and daily stretching is also critical.
“A daily stretching regimen applied to warm muscles (after working out) of 2-3 sets of 30-45 seconds is optimal for injury prevention,” says Lauren Sutherland, a registered physiotherapist at Ace Physio in downtown Toronto.
Stretching can help increase range of motion, loosen tight muscles and reduce inflammation, soreness and joint pain that surface as a result of overtraining. Sutherland says pain could also be a result of poor technique, lack of hydration or improper footwear. To alleviate these symptoms, along with stretching, physiotherapy, massages and foam rolling will help.
The longer the person waits to recover, the more they will get inflamed. Inflammation prevents the body from healing. Sutherland advises any athlete that feels pain to seek recovery methods as soon as possible to be able to get back into a routine faster.
“Once aggravating activities are identified and stopped, the total length of recovery can be anywhere from 4-12 weeks. This timeline depends on how severe the injury is, how diligent you are with your rehab and home exercise program, and individual factors such as age, nutrition, sleep, stress/anxiety and any medical conditions one may have,” she says.
A recent study publication in Harvard Health Publications from Harvard Medical School outlines the vitamins, minerals and herbs to eat to boost the immune system and prevent injury. Immune boosters are vitamin-C rich fruits like berries and oranges. Eating anti-inflammatory foods such as whole grains, dark leafy greens, extra-virgin olive oil, beets, tart cherries, garlic and onions may ease inflammation in the body. Spices like ginger, turmeric, cayenne and chili peppers are also contain anti-inflammatory agents.
23-year-old Emily Baturin is a competitive rower. She says one of her teammates fractured a rib from overtraining in preparation for a rowing competition.
“Fractured ribs can take weeks or months to heal. During this time, the individual was unable to row or do any physical activity that elicited heavy breathing. The rower was forced to take (unwanted) time off training,” says Baturin, a current Masters of Science in Physical Therapy student at Queens University and graduate of McMaster University's Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology program.
“There is a point during the summer racing season every year when I feel the most fatigued, physically sore, and ineffective. This happens about two weeks before the biggest race of the season which we have been building our training towards,” Baturin says.
At this point, her coach will advise a rest day, which will mark the beginning of taper. Taper is a gradual recovery period over the course of a week including either very light cardio or no physical activity at all.
This allows the body to recover from strenuous training days and promotes fresh blood flow to release any lactate (lactic acid leaves muscles feeling sore) that may have pooled in their muscles.
“Being active everyday is a healthy, safe and recommended,” says David Ollivier, a personal trainer and athletic coach located just outside of Sydney, Australia.
“But the bottom line is, the best way to judge the amount of exercise is to listen to your body,” he says, “If you feel sluggish, a decrease in strength, or injuries are popping up...it's time to take a rest.”
Is the winter weather getting to you this season?
The 'winter blues' could leave you feeling more than S.A.D
Laura Lehman
2014
The winter blues are common in Canadians, but slight mood changes and loss of energy can quickly turn into a clinical form of depression called Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D).
With the lack of sunshine in the winter months, shorter days and a tendency to stay indoors, many Canadians are likely to feel sluggish, tired, sad and maybe even experience cravings for sugary foods and carbohydrates. Many doctors and other health professionals spread awareness of the disorder by outlining the symptoms to their patients especially in the months following the holiday season, with hopes to prevent S.A.D or treat the symptoms early.
According to the Mood Disorders Association of Ontario, at least 15 per cent of Canadians will experience a mild form of S.A.D in their lifetime, and up to 6 per cent of Canadians will be diagnosed with major depression as a result of S.A.D.
“The symptoms are often insidious. They begin little bit, by little bit,” says Dr. Norman Rosenthal, author of Winter Blues, on a HuffPost Live interview published on February 17, 2014.
“There's a little less energy, you need a little more sleep, you're noshing a little more on the sweets and on the starches, you're gaining a few pounds, you don't feel so social, you don't feel so productive, you don't feel so creative. And all of this can just be passed of as, 'Oh well, everybody has bad days',”
But it could be a serious disorder or the beginning of depression, he warns. The Mood Disorders Association of Ontario states that in any given week, at least 500,000 employed Canadians are unable to work due to mental health problems.
A study from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in December 2012 found that up to 80 per cent of those affected by S.A.D are female and that people aged 20-40 are more likely to be affected. Most of the time the hormonal changes are due to less exposure to natural sunlight.
Dr. Rosenthal pioneered the use of light therapy to treat S.A.D. He believes that using light boxes in your home from September to April will prevent S.A.D and increase levels of serotonin, the happy hormone we lack in winter months.
“I was really quite ridiculed by my colleges for a long time,” he says in regards to the light box. “But I knew I was right. I had felt the affects of the light box,” says Rosenthal.
Light therapy has been found to have an anti-depressant effect in 70 per cent of people with S.A.D. Most people discover positive mood changes within two weeks of beginning light therapy. These are not tanning beds. Tanning beds provide a different type of light (UV light) and are not helpful for treating seasonal depression.
Dr. Flordicante Cabilan has a different opinion. Cabilan is a retired medical doctor who was a family physician in the Philippines and in Canada for over 30 years.
“There are many other factors that may contribute to winter S.A.D. It is a genetic disorder. A lot of people excuse it for the lack of sun, but it's not always that. People in tropical countries can suffer from S.A.D, too,” he says.
Instead of light therapy, Dr. Cabilan recommends oral lithium tablets prescribed by a doctor to stabilize the mind by boosting the levels of serotonin, monthly injections of an equivalent medication, or Selective Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitors (SSRIs).
“I'm not against SSRIs, but I always recommend exercise for my clients for depression first,” says Tammy Laber, a counsellor for mental health located in Toronto. “Exercise has so many health benefits.” Laber is part of the Ontario Association of Consultants, Counsellors, Psychometrists and Psychotherapists.
Eat Right Ontario, a government funded dietitian service, believes that though exercise and eating nutritious foods lead to a happier lifestyle, these things should not replace any depression medication prescribed by a doctor.
Eat Right Ontario also says that there is nothing in their research that shows a certain food or vitamin can help fight depression.
Rachelle Bellamy, Consumer Affairs Representative at Jamieson Vitamins, disagrees. “There are numerous vitamin D receptors found throughout the brain connecting vitamin D to mental health,” she says. “We always recommend vitamins throughout the winter for people suffering S.A.D or winter blues. Health Canada recommends 1,000 international units per day and the Canadian Cancer Society recommends an additional 1,000 international units during the winter,” says Bellamy.
“You can eat real foods to get vitamin D...food in their natural state,” says Vicky Hachey, a registered holistic nutritionist.
Hachey has experienced S.A.D. She says that simply eating foods high in protein and vitamin D helped her overcome it.
Anyone experiencing S.A.D symptoms or who want to prevent the onset of symptoms should speak to their doctor before making changes to their lifestyles.
A Church for Church-dropouts
Laura Lehman
2012
The smell of popcorn lingers in the air as people fill into the seats of theatre one. The lights are dim but the screen is bright at the front of the room. The song Paradise by Coldplay plays in the background of the theatre, but can barely be heard as chatter fills the room of the crowd waiting for 10 o’clock.
But this isn’t a crowd gathered for a 10 p.m. movie. This is a bunch of people waiting for the 10 a.m. church service in the movie theatre to begin.
Located on Richmond Street West, inside the Scotiabank Theatre, the Meeting House church plays on the screen every Sunday. The service attracts approximately 450 people of all ages, with different world views and backgrounds each week.
Eva Wong, assistant pastor of the site, walks onto the stage. “We have now expanded,” she says. “There's a service being played on the screen in theatre three, as well.”
Behind her, the screen is dark blue with bold, white letters that say: The Meeting House: The church for people who aren't into church.
The Meeting House follows Anabaptist teachings, emphasizing the importance of friendship and community rather than rules and religion. It was founded in 1985 and began in Oakville, Ont. Each Sunday the Oakville location has a live service, then the video of this service plays on movie theatre screens at regional Meeting House sites the following week. Campuses stretch from Kitchener-Waterloo, to Hamilton, Toronto, north to Parry Sound and east to Ottawa.
Bruxy Cavey, the lead teaching pastor of the Meeting House, appears on the screen, laughing as he shows the church audience a video clip from a modern comedy to grab their attention.
Cavey looks approachable, with long wavy brown hair touching his mustard-coloured polo shirt. His hands are tucked into the pockets of his blue jeans.
He begins the teaching and says that there will be a question and answer period at the end. He encourages everyone to take out their cell phones during the service and text in a question.
Located in the heart of downtown, in club district, the service could easily go unnoticed as there is only a small, temporary sign posted out front of the theatre on Sunday mornings. But the downtown Toronto Meeting House has one of the highest populations of Meeting House sites. In fact, it also has the largest demographic of young adults.
Many people hear about this church through word of mouth. Anita Giardina, 26, was raised in a Catholic home but wanted to try different churches. A friend introduced her to the Meeting House two years ago, and the first thing she noticed was how Cavey says a warm welcome to new people from different backgrounds and religions each week before he begins his teaching.
Giardina recently brought her friend Sarah to the service who had been hurt by her previous church family. “Sarah says she has been craving the sense of community that she felt here ever since,” she says.
“When you say the service is in a movie theatre, something they’re familiar with, a welcoming and comfortable atmosphere, they tend to look at church differently,” says Eric Faulknor, service producer for the downtown Toronto site.
Cavey says a church doesn’t have to be in a cathedral or some holy place.
And Richmond Street West is far from pure or holy.
Hours before, on a late Saturday night, Richmond street looks completely different than it does on a Sunday morning. There are meat vendors that will be gone the next morning, clusters of women in mini skirts and heels and guys in tightly buttoned-up shirts reeking of cheap cologne.
Across from the movie theatre that lights up the corner of John and Richmond streets stands twenty-year-old Trevor, coaxing water into his intoxicated friend.
Trevor grew up in a Christian home but decided that his family's church was too strict and full of rules. When Trevor heard that there's a church in the movie theatre, he found the idea appealing.
What he found more interesting is that he is encouraged to enjoy a beer at the Madison Avenue pub with other adults from the Meeting House throughout the week.
“It's about enjoying things that God has given us,” says Wong. “One of the most famous stories in the bible is about how Jesus turned water into wine.”
Daniel Mei, 30, says that meeting new people and socializing is what he likes the most about coming to church. He says that people who aren't into singing, or are intimidated by the idea of prayer, can still feel comfortable.
“We’ve created a church for church dropouts. We don’t think were the best church around, or the only great church, we just have a specific goal of creating that place for people who couldn’t fit in to other churches,” says Cavey.
George Barna, founder of the Barna Group, a market research firm that specializes in studying religious beliefs and behaviour throughout North America, conducted a study revealing that 65 per cent of high school students that were raised in Christian homes stopped attending church after they graduated.
Larry Greenwood, one of 2,500 volunteers at the Meeting House, says that his 29-year-old daughter was a church-dropout until she accompanied her father to the Meeting House series The God Debate, that examined work of atheist authors. She was pleased with Cavey's openness to teaching about other world views and has come back to the service since then.
At the end of the service, someone asks Cavey how to expand the Meeting House community. His answer is to invite people to church so that they can experience it for themselves.
It's just before noon. Theatre employees are setting up their food stands as people come out of the two theatres to mingle with their church friends in the lobby of the Scotiabank theatre.
From 2009-2011, Laura wrote articles for print publications: Sports Xpress & Saltlfeet News.
She had work published in the Stoney Creek News as well as the Hamilton Spectator.
From 2011-2015 she covered local Toronto news for Ryerson community papers. This includes closely following and covering these cases: former Mayor Rob Ford's ongoing Drug scandal, The 2011 Smellie Murder case, Occupy Toronto protests, Toronto City Council Big Oil & Pipline debate and Toronto Mayoral elections.
From 2013-2015 she was the Sports Beat Reporter for the Ryersonian. She had the pleasure of covering the press conference that announced Rogers Sportsnet's 5.2 billion dollar NHL broadcast deal. During this time she also contributed to the health and science news and business news sections.