The work being done through the Movember program, the early winter mental health initiative in Canada, has only grown in awareness in recent years - all of which is wonderful news.

More specifically, however, the efforts that are targetted through Breaking the Ice, a hockey/sport centric approach to tackling the tough conversations with youth are truthfully just beginning to take root.

In northern Ontario, a big part of that was due to the energies of Program Implementation Manager Shannon Nix (Movember), in tandem with Lindsay Morell (Membership Services Coordinator for the Northern Ontario Hockey Association) and her cohorts in North Bay.

The partners involved spent a week in late October travelling to West Nipissing, Sudbury, New Liskeard and Porcupine, introducing six NOHA teams to interactive sessions with coaches and players, as well as a separate presentation to parents.

"We were initially partnered with the GTHL (Greater Toronto Hockey League), but we wanted to see how the program might work with some of the more rural communities," said Nix. In fact, though the messaging was the same, there was some variation that occured as the grouped moved towards smaller communities.

"In the GTA, we used much more of a bottom-up approach in working with specific teams," said Nix. "Working with the NOHA really helped bring the communities around the program, rather than the program going into the communities."

Regardless, of the approach, the expected takeaways remained unchanged.

"If any of the participants that we had were to walk away with anything at all, it would be a win, from our perspective," stressed Nix. "But if we really look into those key messages that we deliver in relation to the program, I kind of like to succintly suggest that we try and teach the players what to say and teach the coaches and parents what to listen for."

"We want players to know what to do, who to ask for help if they think they are experiencing some challenges with their mental health, or if they feel that a teammate might be. We want coaches and parents walking away with an empowerment with the ability to act."

While there are a number of different avenues that groups like Movember can select as their conduit to access today's youth, sport has some built in advantages. "Everyone involved in sport understands physical injuries," said Nix.

"Starting with something that everyone already knows and understands in relation to sport is key."

The ability to draw parallels between the need for treatment and rehabilitation with injuries, whether they be physical or mental, can provide a relevant perspective for pre-teens and teens living in a world where these types of services are required more than ever.

"There's still a little bit of hesitancy and I would be remiss if I suggested that we don't have barriers when we go into dressing rooms, but I think that it's less now barriers around stigma and more based on the fact that we simply haven't had the conversation before," said Nix.

While Nix was certainly at the forefront of the introduction of Breaking the Ice in the north, it's not a road that she travelled alone.

"I would really like for the communities and the teams that we worked with, as well as the NOHA, to get their recognition," said Nix. "This would not have happened if they hadn't reached out and asked for help."

And when it comes to the whole issue of mental health, any help that is given is a good thing, regardless of where in the world that you live.