Episode 18: Talking Trans Wellness with Registered Social Worker, Juliana Simon, from Trans Wellness Ontario

On this episode, BANA Health Educator, Stephani Fenkanyn chats with Registered Social Worker, Juliana Simon (she/her), from Trans Wellness Ontario (TWO). TWO is a community mental health organization within Windsor-Essex whose mission is to enhance and sustain the health and wellness of Transgender, Genderqueer, Two-Spirit, Non-Binary, Queer and Questioning communities and their families.

Juliana is a social worker at TWO and conducts assessments for new clients, facilitates health outreach and provides individual counselling for members of the Trans* community and their partners. In her studies at the University of Windsor, she completed a Bachelors of Social Work and Women’s and Gender Studies. Juliana notes that this is where her love for activism and advocacy flourished. As a member of the community, Juliana is extremely proud of the work she does at TWO and is happy she can now offer services that were not accessible to herself or to other loved ones who have experienced similar challenges.

In this episode, Stephani and Juliana discuss Juliana’s role, as well as the services offered at TWO and which are most heavily utilized by their clients. They get into the type of education TWO provides to other organizations and the importance of a safe space in health care for members of the Trans* community. Stephani asks Juliana to describe some of the terminology that is used and why it is important to be considerate of one’s pronouns. They also touch upon the unique considerations that pertain to the Trans* community as it relates to body image issues.

To learn more about how you get involved and to educate yourself, please visit www.transwellness.ca. Follow Trans Wellness on social media at: @transwellnessontario