Kate Ronnebeck: Cough cough cough

Description

A Walk in Other’s Shoes is returning to this year’s Week of Action Against Poverty. This challenge is being undertaken by individuals in the community who have interests within the health field. Participants have been asked to attempt to stay within a social assistance benefits’ budget. A single person on Ontario Works would receive $337 monthly for all of their personal needs and $384 for all of their shelter costs. Because participants cannot replicate the housing conditions realistically, shelter costs are not included within this challenge. For the five day challenge, participants will have $11 daily to cover all food and drink, entertainment, some personal supplies and transportation costs. Each day, every participant will be given a challenge card which will reveal an unexpected challenge to be completed before the end of the day.

A Walk in Other’s Shoes is not a competitive challenge. It is a challenge that raises awareness of the hurdles that people living on social assistance face daily. As we within our community develop our own understanding, we can begin to reduce the barriers that they encounter and ultimately increase opportunities for increased prosperity for all. The challenge takes place February 10th-14th, 2018.

Tuesday, February 13, 2018

Cough cough cough

Day 4 today. Challenge card opened and apparently I've got a bad cold ... more about the rest of the day to follow ...

"You have a nasty cold. Purchase some items to curb the symptoms."

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About Me

Why do you want to undertake the Walk In Our Shoes challenge?

My life has been pretty good so far. I grew up in Red Lake, went to university in Montreal, and moved to Kenora. I have a husband, a 3 year old son, and a dog. We own our own home and are comfortable. I am a Registered Dietitian with the Sunset Country Family Health Team. We love to spend time working out, curling (for me), playing hockey (my husband) and getting out on the lake in the summer.

Why do you want to undertake the Walk In Our Shoes challenge?

To be honest, I don’t want to do it … but I feel that I should do it. I feel I can learn a lot from this experience. My job is to help people learn to eat healthier. I know that budget and access to food is a major barrier to proper nutrition. Many of the people that I see struggle with having enough money to buy healthy food so this is their reality. By taking the challenge, I am hoping I can become more aware of the frustrations and daily struggles they experience.

What do you think will be the hardest part of the five days?

In addition to the obvious difficulty of living off such a limited budget, I tend to be a fairly private person and don’t do much on social media so blogging may be a little hard for me.

Have you thought of any strategies for helping you get through it?

I get to check out the nutritional advice I have given to others. I admit that I am totally afraid of what I might find out about myself and my work.

What do you expect to gain from your experience?

I am hoping I will learn a bit about the recommendations I often make to people - which are helpful and which are not - and of course hopefully learn some new strategies. As health professionals, I know we sometimes tell patients what they need to do, without always offering them a way to get them what they need to do it. Overall, I am hoping to be more effective in helping the people I see.