On May 9th, thousands of Canadians traveled to the nation’s capital and took part in the ‘Campaign for Life’ - an annual gathering of the anti-choice community to protest Canada’s pro-choice stance. In ‘solidarity’, regional chapters of the Campaign for Life coalition organized similar small-scale protests that will occur throughout the month of May. Last week was [...]
The Team
Kathleen Pye
Kathleen Pye is a doctoral student at the University of New Brunswick. She holds a BSc in Kinesiology, an MEd in Counselling Psychology, and an MSc in Nutritional Biochemistry. As a researcher, counselor, and activist, Kathleen aims to lessen secrecy, promote awareness, build understanding, and provide assistance for those affected by eating issues and disorders. She tweets from @KathleenCanada.
Recent blog posts written by Kathleen Pye
My home is not safe for women
By now, all of us are aware of the tragic circumstances of Rehtaeh Parsons’ rape, torment, and suicide. I don’t need to provide the details of what happened to her. To be honest, and perhaps selfishly so, I know I can’t bear to write about it. Because this isn’t the first time we have written [...]
Because all children deserve ‘Forever Families’: On the Importance of Same-Sex Adoption
I have a ‘forever family’. It consists of a mom, and dad, and me – their adopted daughter. I grew up in a permanent ‘forever home’ with a loving, supportive family in much the same way other children do with their biological parents. And with all this love and support I was able to grow [...]
Women and Mental Health
Over the past two weeks, the HBO show ‘Girls’ has focused on the mental health challenges of Hannah. We have been introduced to Hannah’s secret – her shameful struggle with anxiety characterized by obsessive tendencies, a necessity to repeat tasks 8 times, often until the point of embarrassment, injury (as we saw last week), and [...]
The Silent Multitudes: Eating Disorder Awareness Week
I have had the honour of helping to facilitate groups for university women with eating disorders and eating issues for the past 4 years. Each week, for a six-week period, we come together to discuss our stories; detailing our successes, our challenges, our joys, and our heartbreak. For a short moment in time we offer [...]
The Stigma of Being One in Four
I have been in therapy, off and on, for the past six years. In hindsight, I would describe the younger Kathleen as anxious, worried, and concerned about the future. As I got older, I became a perfectionist; one of those over-achieving kids who never felt as though they were ‘getting it right’. In university I [...]
23 Years After Montreal Massacre: Why We Shouldn’t Just “Move On”
“I am here to fight against feminism. That is why I am here. You’re all a bunch of feminists, and I hate feminists.” Those were the words that 25 year old Marc Lépine proclaimed as he walked into a classroom at École Polytechnique (an engineering school at the Université de Montréal) on December 6th, 1989, armed with [...]
What It Means To Be Adopted: In Celebration Of National Adoption Day
I was born on April 20th, 1984. On June 5th, nearly two months after being placed on an adoption list in Montreal, I met my parents and became Kathleen. I can’t be sure what occurred during the two month gap between my birth and the introduction to my family; perhaps it’s an ‘adoptive limbo’, a [...]
A Hope for the Future: An Open Letter to Lady Gaga
Dear Lady Gaga, Let me start off my prefacing this open letter. I’m not writing this in the hopes of pulling at proverbial heartstrings nor am I hoping to gain unwanted attention. I’m writing this to thank you. Over the past few weeks you have been maliciously attacked because of your appearance. To say this [...]
Feminism: The Pursuit of Happiness
Ask yourself: what do you want for your life? The most common answer? To strive to live a life that brings the greatest joy; that is, the goal of being happy. The good news for your virtuous endeavor? The pursuit of life happiness is your basic and inalienable right. Thanks to the know-how of the [...]