Canada prides itself on its open immigration policies and multiculturalism, but what is often overlooked is how much of a toll immigrating, trying to fit into a new country, or facing racism as a newcomer or the child of immigrant parents, can take on your mental health.

A study published late last year in the Canadian Medical Association Journal found that immigrant and refugee youth aged 10-14 in Canada are more likely to visit the emergency room (ER) as their first access point for medical care for mental health concerns than those born within the country.

Researchers looked at almost 119,000 youth who visited an ER for mental health concerns between 2010 and 2014 in Ontario. Slightly more than 61 per cent of the 2,194 refugee youth in the study and 57.6 per cent of 6,680 non-refugee immigrant youth had their first mental health care contact at the ER, compared to 51.3 per cent of Canadian-born youth.

The most common reasons for the visit were substance-related disorders, followed by anxiety disorders, said the study, and the lead study author, Dr. Natasha Saunders, said the results showed that immigrants and refugees may not have the same access to mental health care services as Canadian-born youth.

Watch “People of colour are uniquely affected by mental health issues.” Story continues below.

The role of racism and trauma

The existence of racism is often downplayed in Canada, making it difficult to properly assess and tackle how it affects the people it targets.

“Racism is an underlying current that doesn’t get its fair share of attention in the Canadian context because we have this rhetoric of multiculturalism,” says Zoua Vang, an associate professor of sociology at McGill University who researches racial and ethnic health disparities. “We’re told that everybody is on equal footing, but the reality for a person of colour is very different.”

Fardous Hosseiny, the national director of research and public policy at the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA), said we need to consider the effects — often longterm — that trauma and racism can play in a newcomer’s mental health state.

“Many of the people who flee their home country have seen war, violence, or even torture. They may have come from impoverished backgrounds, or faced persecution or discrimination in their country — that has a huge effect on mental health,” Hosseiny told HuffPost Canada.

He added that many also lose family members or loved ones during the migration experience.

“Even long after the danger has passed, these frightening events leave signs and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder that can last for years,” he said.

Some of the symptoms may include flashbacks, nightmares, or difficulty sleeping, said Hosseiny, adding that these symptoms can be exacerbated by isolation, stressing that it’s important for people to share their experiences and stories with family members, others in the community, or with a therapist.

Watch “Refugee kids face unique mental health challenges.” Story continues below.

The shock of starting over

For many immigrant children or teens, their education is disrupted when they relocate to another country, which can set back learning and development. And, language barriers can discourage some students from speaking up in class, or asking for help if a curriculum is too fast-paced, which creates a void of academic support.

In addition to language barriers, which might affect learning, bullying can and often does have a profound impact on a child’s well-being.

“Being shunned or excluded because you are different impacts not just a child’s or teenager’s sense of self-worth, but can impact their belief systems about the world, and can encourage them to turn against their own culture,” Diviya Lewis, a psychotherapist, told HuffPost Canada.

Lewis knows this experience all too well. She moved to Canada from India with her family when she was five years old.

“Because I was picked on as a kid, I would accuse my parents of being ‘too brown,’ and would feel myself get embarrassed by them,” she said.

Lewis said bullying can affect one’s self-esteem and self-confidence well into adulthood if someone isn’t counselled at the time or doesn’t have support.

“It’s up to parents, teachers and educators to foster space for kids and young people to feel safe to open up, to teach their kids about the impact of bullying, to recognize the signs of bullying — withdrawal, nightmares, atypical acting out, unexplained crying or reverting back to stages that they’ve moved past — and to help them open the conversation,” said Lewis.

Forced career changes

Hosseiny noted that adults also face major disruptions in their careers when they relocate.

“As part of the acculturation process, there’s a huge decline in socioeconomic status for some immigrants,” said Hosseiny. “Their skills and education may not be transferable. What they had back home, such as being well-employed for the skills that they studied for, is not recognized when they come here. That can negatively affect a person’s mental health.”

And because of this, children of immigrants can feel guilty and pressured when they see the economic challenges their parents face, he added.

“They see their parents trying to make ends meet and they’re affected by that, he said. “It can be a source of sadness or depression.”

Second-generation Canadians are affected differently

Language may be less of a barrier for people who are born and raised in Canada, but there are other struggles that can lead to distress.

“Growing up, second-generation Canadians may feel even more of a clash in a sense because they’re being taught one thing in the school system and by society — that they’re equal — and yet, in their daily lives, they’re treated as if they’re the ‘other,'” said Zoua Vang.

She noted that this dual experience can cause underlying stress that affects mental health. This can lead to feeling alienated and can cause children of immigrants to act out in ways they may not be conscious of.

“This could be reflected in only having white friends, or saying disparaging things about their own (cultural) groups. They might buy into racist ideologies that the dominant (cultural) groups are saying about them, that they are inferior.”

And there’s the added layer of finding an identity between those of their parents’ culture of origin while maintaining the culture they were brought into, said Hosseiny.

Lewis battled trying to straddle both of these cultural worlds, she said.

“Some of the messages and beliefs that were ingrained into me by my parents, were that ‘You have to work hard, because nothing is handed to you’, ‘You have to do whatever it takes to get your foot in the door, and you must work your way up.’ It doesn’t matter what you want or like, you have to fit in with the system. At the same time, I was also exposed to messages through teachers, friends, and their parents about how special I was, and that what I want matters,” said Lewis. “So I was constantly pulled in two directions.”

When doing the ‘right thing’ is the wrong thing

Besides the fact that mental health-care services in Canada are often not available in a person’s native tongue, there’s also a stigma associated with mental illnesses in many cultures. Hosseiny said there is still a need for mental health literacy in many cultures.

Immigrant parents, and subsequently, their children, are often raised not to show weakness, so their mode of coping involves “sucking it up” and “doing the right thing.”

“Often, it’s something that’s not talked about at all. When you’re sad, the common language is: ‘Why are you sad? Just get over it. Some of your family back home are dealing with war. What right do you have to be depressed?'” said Hosseiny.

But that’s not how depression works.

“Yes, it’s upsetting your cousins back home are dealing with bombs on a daily basis, but your depression and mental health is not correlated with what your cousins are dealing with back home. It’s your own personal illness,” he added.

Lewis said that as a therapist, when working with youth from various cultural backgrounds, the two most common areas of focus for her are to find ways to alleviate their guilt and longstanding shame and assertiveness training to help them advocate for their needs.

“In their families growing up, their emotional needs are often not a main priority, they’re taught to not question authority, so assertiveness training is necessary in a culturally sensitive way,” she said. “Emotional awareness, compassion, and forgiveness are so important.”

For many, schools or universities are the first opportunity they have had to even consider their mental health, said Lewis.

“It might not be openly spoken about in their homes, churches/mosques/temples etc., so we sometimes saw deep-rooted trauma emerge for the first time. We need to create an environment where newcomers are aware of the support systems that exist and how to access them.”

Are you in a crisis? If you need help, contact Crisis Services Canada at their website or by calling 1-833-456-4566. If you know someone who may be having thoughts of suicide, visit CAMH’s resource to learn how to talk about suicide with the person you’re worried about.

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Damon Baker, former head of partner management at Nintendo of America, has officially joined Microsoft as the head of portfolio for Xbox.

Announced through Twitter, Baker said, “Been soaking up knowledge this last month as the new Head of Portfolio for #Xbox! Honored and excited to help evaluate all 2nd/3rd party content towards our strategy.”

This comes about a month after Baker made the announcement that he was leaving Nintendo, where he helped bring games to Switch from independent developers in the form of “Nindies,” as well as AAA games from bigger third-party publishers. Though big titles like Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odyssey and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate have been paramount to Switch’s success, it’s become a natural home to smaller indie games like Celeste, Hollow Knight and more.

Soon after Baker left Nintendo, the company held an Indie Highlights presentation, which showcased nine independent games coming to the platform, including Wargroove, CrossCode, SteamWorld Quest, and more. Even a year prior, it became clear that Nindies are core to Nintendo’s success.

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While independent games have been a major part of the Xbox lineup since the days of Xbox 360, it’s possible Baker being hired by Microsoft is a sign that the company will increase its focus on indie games in the upcoming console generation.

Baker’s new position seems to closely resemble the work he did with Nintendo, and since Microsoft has been buying new major studios left and right for first party content, it’s likely Baker will help ensure content from outside studios remains healthy on the rumored family of devices Microsoft has up its sleeves for the next console generation.

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In order to fit all of those Nindies onto your Switch, check out these deals on Micro SD cards.

Colin Stevens is a news writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.

OKLAHOMA CITY – The Amateur Softball Association (ASA)/USA Softball announced a list of 43 initial invitees for the 2017 USA Softball Women’s National Team Selection Camp to be held January 1-5, 2017  at Eddie C. Moore Softball Complex in Clearwater, Fla.  Those athletes who accept the invitation to try out will vie for 17 spots on the 2017 USA Softball Women’s National Team (WNT) roster.  Additional athletes may be invited to the USA Softball WNT Selection Camp at a later date. 

Click HERE to see the 43 athletes who have received an invitation to try out for the Women’s National Team.

During the selection process, athletes will participate in position drills as well as simulated games and be evaluated by the USA Softball Women’s National Team Selection Committee (WNTSC).  Athletes who make the 2017 USA Softball WNT roster will be competing at a Pan American Games/World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) World Championship Qualifier in Florida, where the U.S. will look to qualify for the 2018 WBSC Women’s World Championship to be held in Chiba, Japan and the 2019 Pan American Games to be held in Lima, Peru.  The complete 2017 schedule for the WNT, including exhibition games, will be announced at a later date. 

Vying for a spot on the 2017 roster are all members of the 2016 USA Softball WNT, which reclaimed the Gold Medal at the WBSC Women’s World Championship in Surrey, B.C., Canada after defeating defending champions Japan, 7-3, in the Gold Medal Game.  As a team, the U.S. finished the 2016 WBSC Women’s World Championship with a .436 team batting average, 19 home runs, 80 RBI and outscored opponents 83-10 while the pitching staff allowed just eight earned runs for a 1.19 ERA.       

For updates on the USA Softball Women’s National Team and events throughout the 2017 season visit www.ASAUSASoftball.com.

— Courtesy of ASA/USA Softball

An animated series based off the 1984 comedy-horror classic Gremlins will reportedly be coming to Warner’s as of yet unnamed streaming service.

Reported by Variety, the show will allegedly be a period piece following a young Mr. Wing, the Chinese antique store owner from the original movie. Wing will reportedly go on adventures with Gizmo the friendly Mogwai throughout the show.

The series will reportedly be produced by Warner Bros. Television and Amblin Television, both of which produced the original two Gremlins films. Tze Chun, known for his work on Cold Comes the Night, Children of Invention, Gotham and Once Upon a Time, will reportedly write and executive produce.

For more on Gremlins, check out 12 things you (probably) didn’t know about the film, and our review of the movie on Blu-Ray, which we called “Great” saying “Director Joe Dante’s token sense of humor, seen in his earlier films like The Howling or Piranha, is perfectly blended with the amusing, and surprisingly scary horror elements, creating a fine horror-comedy genre-bender in a similar vein to something like An American Werewolf in London.”

Colin Stevens is a news writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.

Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan  — Members of the 2016 USA Softball Women’s National Team (WNT) landed in Tokyo, Japan for the USA vs Japan All-Star Series announced the Amateur Softball Association (ASA)/USA Softball on Tuesday.  Team USA will participate in three games against the Japan National Team, including a series-opening matchup at the Tokyo Dome.

Click here for the 2016 USA Softball Women’s National Team roster

The USA Softball WNT and Japan kick off the series on Thursday, June 23 at 6:30 p.m. JST time (4:30 a.m. CT) at the Tokyo Dome, including a pre-game “Home Run Derby”.  From there, the U.S. will head to Sendai for the remaining two games against Japan.  Held at Shellcom Sendai, Team USA will face Japan at 6:30 p.m. JST (4:30 a.m. CT) on Friday, June 24 and 2 p.m. JST (12 a.m. CT) on Saturday, June 25. 

Representing the U.S. at the USA vs Japan All-Star Series are: Ali Aguilar (Orangevale, Calif.), Valerie Arioto (Pleasanton, Calif.), Kelly Barnhill (Marietta, Ga.), Bianka Bell (Tampa, Fla.) Ally Carda (Elk Grove, Calif.), Raven Chavanne (Thousand Oaks, Calif.), Amanda Chidester (Allen Park, Mich.), Kasey Cooper (Dothan, Ala.), Delanie Gourley (Lakeside, Calif.), Paige Halstead (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.), Jazmyn Jackson (San Jose, Calif.), Haylie McCleney (Morris, Ala.), Jessica Moore (Sutter, Calif.), Michelle Moultrie (Jacksonville, Fla.), Aubree Munro (Brea, Calif.), Delaney Spaulding (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.), Kelsey Stewart (Wichita, Kan.), Janie Takeda (Placentia, Calif.) and Jaclyn Traina (Naples, Fla.) 

Team USA will be led at the USA vs Japan All-Star Series by Howard Dobson (Baton Rouge, La./Asst. Coach at LSU), Lisa Dodd (San Diego, Calif./Head Coach at UNLV) and John Rittman (Valencia, Calif.).

Live stats will be available during the USA vs Japan All-Star Series, and fans at home can follow along with recaps and more at ASAUSASoftball.com.

— Courtesy of ASA/USA Softball

The Ontario government will force post-secondary schools to discipline students who interfere with “free speech.”

Premier Doug Ford’s office announced Thursday that it would require all colleges and universities that receive government funding to publish a “free speech policy” by Jan. 1.

Policies must meet requirements set by his office: include a definition of free speech, restrict speech that is considered illegal under Canadian law and discipline students who interfere. Interference is described as, “ongoing disruptive protesting that significantly interferes with the ability of an event to proceed.”

Ford said in a press release that schools “should be places where students exchange different ideas and opinions in open and respectful debate.”

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The right to freedom of speech does not exist under Canadian law, like it does in the United States. The Charter of Rights and Freedoms protects freedom of opinion and expression, to a certain point. Speech that incites hatred against any identifiable group or leads to a breach of peace is punishable with jail time.

Representatives for Ford did not immediately respond to HuffPost Canada’s questions.

In March, the issue of freedom of expression on campuses hit a boiling point in Waterloo, Ont.

Faith Goldy, a commentator associated with the racist white nationalist movement, was prevented from speaking at Wilfrid Laurier University after someone pulled a fire alarm.

She had been invited to speak by a student group called Laurier Students for Open Inquiry. The group was launched by graduate student Lindsay Shepherd, who made headlines after she was disciplined for showing students a video of Jordan Peterson denouncing the use of gender-neutral pronouns for transgender people.

Federal Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer has indicated he supports the denial of funding to schools that censor dissenting opinions. But, he’s said there should be loopholes to make sure schools don’t provide platforms for hate speech.

Star Wars’ Oscar Isaac is in negotiations to join the cast of the Dune reboot, according to Variety.

Isaac will be cast as the father of Timothee Chalamet’s character, who was in negotiations last summer to star in the remake. Rebecca Ferguson, Stellan Skarsgard, and Charlotte Rampling are also on board for the film.

Director of Blade Runner 2049 and Arrival, Denis Villeneuve, is helming the project and co-writing the script with Eric Roth and Jon Spaihts.

Villeneuve has been praised for his work in the sci-fi genre and was nominated for an Oscar in the Best Director category for Arrival, along with seven other nominations for the 2016 film.

The Dune project has been on the sidelines for years, with multiple production companies trying to get remakes off the ground. Legendary Pictures finally acquired both film and TV rights to Frank Herbert’s popular sci-fi novel in 2016.

Isaac will be returning in his role as Poe Dameron in Star Wars: Episode IX on Dec. 20, 2019.

The X-wing fighter pilot also voices his character in Disney Channel’s Star Wars Resistance animated series. Read about how Isaac said the upcoming and final Star Wars film in the recent trilogy will honor the late Carrie Fisher.

Jessie Wade is a news writer for IGN and is excited about the Dune reboot. Follow her on Twitter @jessieannwade.

DENVER, Colo. – No. 5 Humboldt State is one win away from its third national championship after Madison Williams tossed a three-hit shutout in a 5-0 win over No. 3 North Alabama in game one of the Division II National Championship series on Friday evening from the Regency Athletic Complex on the campus of Metropolitan State University of Denver.

Prior to the game one win, the Jacks (54-6-1) earned their berth into the championship series with a 6-2 win over No. 16 Armstrong State in the “if necessary” semifinal game.

The Jacks and the Lions (57-7) will square off in game two at 2:00 ET on Saturday. A game three is scheduled for 4:30 should North Alabama win.

Championship Series Game 1 – No. 5 Humboldt State 5, No. 3 North Alabama 0

Madison Williams twirled a three-hit masterpiece to lead Humboldt State to a 5-0 win over North Alabama in the first game of the Championship Series. The junior surrendered just three hits to the nation’s third-best offense, struck out five and did not walk a batter to improve to 26-3 on the season.

The Jacks took advantage of an error to grab a 1-0 lead in the first. Three run-scoring singles in the fourth by Kalyn Paque, Cyndi Chavez and Hannah Holland gave HSU a 4-0 advantage. A sac fly by Sydney Roberts pushed across an insurance run in the sixth.

Paque and Hollingsworth each went 2-for-3 at the plate with Paque recording a double and scoring two runs.

Brooklynn Clark, Madeline Lee and Bailey Nelson each generated one hit for the Lions.

Semifinal – No. 5 Humboldt State 6, Armstrong State 2

Powered by a four-run fourth, Humboldt State earned a 6-2 win over Armstrong State to advance to the 2016 National Championship series. Reaching the semifinals and posting three wins, the Pirates (43-15) made their deepest run in their third trip to the National Championships.

Following three scoreless innings, HSU put a four-spot on the board in the top half of the frame. Paque broke the deadlock with a two-run home run to left. Chavez and Holland each drove in a run with a double and single, respectively.

The Pirates got on the board in the fifth on a Peyton Roth RBI single, but the Jacks would push their lead to 6-1 on a run-scoring singles up the middle by Holland and Tiffany Hollingsworth.

Holland finished 2-for-3 with a double, two RBI and two stolen bases. Katie Obbema improved to 24-3 with a complete-game effort. She scattered eight hits, struck out seven and walked one.

— photo courtesy of Jamie Schwaberow – NCAA Photos