Dixie's Story: "You're not alone."

Depression and anxiety can be very isolating. 62-year old Dixie believes there is a need for more places for mature adults to connect meaningfully, places where they can feel at home, feel like they are part of a family.

Dixie’s own journey has deep roots in the field of mental health as a profession: She worked for a branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association as a teenager, where her mom was a supervisor. Her parents also ran a boarding house for women who had been institutionalized at the now defunct Riverview Hospital in Coquitlam from the time Dixie was 4 until she was 22.  She remembers a time when mental health treatment was inhumane, but she also remembers the efforts of good people who cared.  

In 2004, Dixie was officially diagnosed with anxiety and depression, which started after the loss of her mom. Looking back, she believes she always had anxiety, but it wasn’t until about six years ago that she fully realized that it was a legitimate mental health challenge. Because of her family history, Dixie already knew that CMHA was a good place, and she knew she needed help. So, one day, she “bravely showed up,” at the Wellness Development Centre (WDC) and remembers that CMHA Kelowna’s Wellness Team Lead Gisele “spent two hours with me.”

After that initial meeting, Dixie became a regular participant of the art program. By 2023, even though Dixie was still working full-time, she made sure that Wednesdays were her regular day off so that she could attend the art program. Last year, she started staying for other activities, too.

Dixie herself has had many professional roles in the sector, from being a foster parent, to working for the John Howard Society and a substance use treatment centre.

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“I just have a passion for it,” she says. That passion is what drives her to be a Peer Supporter three days per week. “I just feel that people look at people with a mental illness like ‘I’m afraid it might rub off on me.’”

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This year, Dixie’s wellness focus has been yoga, also offered at the WDC. “I feel that I need to get my body working again.” She’s also actively in counselling and is participating in an 8-week grief workshop. “You think you know everything,” Dixie says. “But you don’t.” So, Dixie continues to learn. She loves the felting class currently part of WDC’s offerings, and continues to work part-time at a local chocolatier. “I’ve come to like my own company a lot more,” she says. “That takes a lot of work.”

Raised in a Port Coquitlam, Saskatchewan (population approx. 100), Dixie says she learned to care for others. A natural caregiver, she’s always had an open kitchen. “People would smell the cooking and just show up.” For Dixie, feeding others is a pathway to creating a safe space for mental health and healing. “I just think they shouldn’t be afraid of it [mental health]. And that everybody is struggling with something. Whether diagnosed or not.”

She’s especially proud of her daughter, who also made her way into the field of social work and is an important part of the CMHA Kelowna staff team. “She’s amazing,” Dixie says. “She just gets more amazing as the years go on.”

Asked what advice she would give to others, Dixie responds, “Just focus on today. Not the whole day. Just a part of it. The part that you’re in. And know that you’re not alone.”

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To learn more about CMHA Kelowna's Wellness Development Centre, visit:

Community Education & Wellness | Canadian Mental Health Association Kelowna

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