BREAKING Average hourly wage in Canada now $34.95: StatCan
Average hourly wages among Canadian employees rose to $34.95 on a year-over-year basis in April, a 4.7 per cent increase, according to a Statistics Canada report released Friday morning.
The Canadian wildfire season began intensely, with fires in eight provinces and one territory forcing thousands of people to flee their homes, not knowing when or whether they would ever return.
For these survivors, it can be difficult to navigate the after-effects of living through traumatic events, explains professor of psychiatry at Dalhousie University, Vincent Agyapong.
Agyapong says that people who live through a traumatic moment like a natural disaster can experience a range of intense emotions that can stay with them throughout their life, and could even develop into a mental health disorder like anxiety or post-traumatic stress disorder.
"The immediate reaction is people feeling very numb, people feeling very anxious, people feeling very tense, people having a sense of disbelief," he told CTV's Your Morning on Friday.
"People go into a state of panic, having panic attacks and it sometimes leads to sleepless nights, it leads to long-term psychological effects, including anxiety disorders, adjustment disorders and major depressive disorders and in some cases, post traumatic stress disorder."
In 2016, Agyapong led a study that surveyed survivors of the wildfires in Fort McMurray, Alta. where 90,000 residents were displaced as 580,000 hectares burned. The survey found, six months after the disaster, nearly 15 per cent of respondents were suffering from some type of major depressive disorder. Additionally, the survey found respondents with depressive symptoms were more likely to experience substance abuse.
The survey also found that people who didn't seek mental health support after the wildfires were 13 times more likely to have a major depressive disorder.
Survivors not receiving mental health support is a concern Agyapong still has, as he says during an emergency mental health counsellors can already be overloaded with work or have been impacted themselves by the disaster.
"Sometimes, some of the healthcare workforce within mental health for themselves are impacted, so at a time where you actually need more people to actually support the population, you actually have a reduction in your workforce. So it's important for governments to build alternate solutions," he said.
Agyapong explains additional help could include more online mental health resources or promotional campaigns to help boost morale and show support to people affected.
Alberta's mental health texting support program is also available to residents in the area if they need it, texting HOPEAB to 393939.
With files from The Canadian Press
------
If you or someone you know is in crisis, here are some resources that are available.
Canada Suicide Prevention Helpline (1-833-456-4566)
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (1 800 463-2338)
Crisis Services Canada (1-833-456-4566 or text 45645)
Hope for Wellness Helpline (English, French, Cree, Ojibway and Inuktitut): 1-855-242-3310
Embrace Life Council hotline: 1-800-265-3333
Kids Help Phone (1-800-668-6868)
If you need immediate assistance call 911 or go to the nearest hospital.
Average hourly wages among Canadian employees rose to $34.95 on a year-over-year basis in April, a 4.7 per cent increase, according to a Statistics Canada report released Friday morning.
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
Andy Kim's 'Rock Me Gently' is marking a major milestone, as it celebrates its 50th anniversary.
Oprah Winfrey said on Thursday evening that she has long played a role in promoting unhealthy and unrealistic diets.
A southwestern Ontario woman has received an $8,400 bill from a hospital in Windsor, Ont., after she refused to put her mother in a nursing home she hated -- and she says she has no intention of paying it.
Toronto police say a man who allegedly attempted to access Drake’s Bridle Path property was taken to hospital on Thursday after an altercation with security guards.
If you're cruising down a highway and realize you have a flat tire, you may want to think twice before stopping to fix it on the side of the road.
Dangerous storms crashed over parts of the U.S. South on Thursday even as the region cleaned up from earlier severe weather that spawned tornadoes, killed at least three people, and gravely injured a boy who was swept into a storm drain as he played in a flooded street.
The National Post is reporting that Rex Murphy, the pundit and columnist who hosted a national call-in radio show for decades, has died.
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.
A small Ajax dessert shop that recently received a glowing review from celebrity food critic Keith Lee is being forced to move after a zoning complaint was made following the social media influencer’s visit last month.
The Canada Science and Technology Museum is inviting visitors to explore their poop. A new exhibition opens at the Ottawa museum on Friday called, 'Oh Crap! Rethinking human waste.'
The Regina Police Service says it is the first in Saskatchewan and possibly Canada to implement new technology in its detention facility that will offer real-time monitoring of detainees’ vital health metrics.
The stakes have been set for a bet between Vancouver and Edmonton's mayors on who will win Round 2 of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
A grieving mother is hosting a helmet drive in the hopes of protecting children on Manitoba First Nations from a similar tragedy that killed her daughter.
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
A P.E.I. lighthouse and a New Brunswick river are being honoured in a Canada Post series.
An Ontario man says he paid more than $7,700 for a luxury villa he found on a popular travel website -- but the listing was fake.