Finding strength in connection

“I’m proud of the supportive culture we’re continuing to build at TC, where conversations about mental health are increasingly happening openly and people are looking out for one another.”
— Vicki

For much of her life, Vicki believed resilience meant one thing: keep going. Or in the words of her favourite British Second World War slogan: “Keep calm and carry on.”

It was a lesson shaped by the generations that came before her. Her grandparents grew up during the Great Depression and became parents during wartime. Her father has lived with chronic pain following a serious accident but has never let it slow him down. Their examples taught her to persevere through difficult circumstances.

So, when Vicki began navigating her own challenges, including seasonal affective disorder, anxiety, depression, chronic health conditions, ADHD and the impacts of menopause, her instinct was the same: push through.

“It wasn’t really a question of whether I would keep going,” she says. “That’s just what I knew how to do.”

But over time, her understanding of resilience has changed.

Growing alongside a changing culture

Since joining TC in 2013, Vicki has built a career spanning quality management, assurance, data analytics, measurement services and project engineering. Nearly 14 years later, the opportunity to continue learning, build her skills and work alongside great people is what keeps her here.

Along the way, she experienced firsthand how workplace culture can evolve.

“When I started, we weren’t having the conversations about mental health, psychological safety or neurodiversity that we have today,” she says.

That shift became especially meaningful as Vicki’s own understanding of herself evolved.

After decades of navigating challenges that never seemed to fully fit together, she received her ADHD diagnosis. It was an “aha” moment that helped her make sense of experiences she had spent years learning to live with and gave her a clearer view of how her brain processes information.

At the same time, her definition of resilience began to change.

What she once viewed as pushing through at all costs became something much more nuanced—the ability to lean on others, seek support and build meaningful connections along the way.

"Supportive culture isn't about removing challenges," she says. "It's about making sure people don't have to face them alone."

The power of trust

“The greatest impact on my career journey has been the trust that leaders have placed in me,” Vicki says.

That trust has strengthened her confidence during times when she questioned herself. By giving her opportunities to grow and the freedom to find her own path forward, her leaders reinforced a foundational belief she now brings to her own mental health advocacy: that people are best supported when they are trusted to understand their own needs and contribute in ways that draw on their strengths.

"A supportive workplace trusts people as whole humans with unique abilities, experiences and perspectives,” she says.

Today, she sees that support reflected in more open conversations about mental wellbeing, employee inclusion networks, Mental Health Champions, wellbeing programs and a growing focus on psychological safety across the organization.

Creating the belonging that shaped her journey

Vicki’s experiences inspired her to become a Mental Health Champion and co-lead BrainWave, our Employee Inclusion Network focused on neurodiversity.

Through BrainWave and the Mental Health Champions network, she helps create space for employees and allies to feel heard, learn about different ways of thinking and connect with others.

Her goal is simple: help others find the sense of understanding and belonging that she spent years searching for herself.

For Vicki, creating connection also means being willing to speak openly about her own experiences. She believes vulnerability gives people something real to relate to and can help others feel less alone.

“If you’re having one of those days when you can’t see your way through, reach out,” she says. “Talk to someone. We have people who care, resources that can help and a culture that continues to move in the right direction.”