A smiling woman wearing glasses and a red jacket stands in a bright space beside a colourful board filled with drawings and messages about transition and community.

Finding her way back

MSH’s Women’s Wellness programs helped Alia rebuild her life and find purpose again.

The beginning of a shift

After moving from Montreal to Markham 16 years ago, Alia Del Bianco built a life centred around her daughter Alexia and her career. Living just minutes from Oak Valley Health’s Markham Stouffville Hospital (MSH), she has long trusted her family physician, Dr. Daryl Lougheed, who has supported her through many life moments, including pregnancy, childbirth, and loss.

Before settling in Markham, Alia experienced unimaginable challenges, including the loss of her father at a young age, a brother who suffered a brain injury, and a stroke that impacted her mobility and stamina. Through it all, she continued to move forward as a working single mother, often putting her own needs aside to support those around her.

In 2018, life's challenges started to weigh heavier, and something began to shift. What started as trouble sleeping and difficulty concentrating gradually became overwhelming. Medications were not helping, and the symptoms felt unfamiliar and frightening.

“One day I remember being at work and everything went kind of blank,” Alia recalls. “I started sweating. I was starting to cry. It came out of nowhere.”

Dr. Lougheed urged her to take a break from work. She resisted at first and when she finally stepped away, she began to lose a sense of identity.

“I really spiralled. I went from working 10-12 hours a day to feeling like the future was unknown. Besides my daughter, work was my sense of purpose, and suddenly it was gone.”

A breaking point

Alia’s condition continued to decline to the point where daily routines felt impossible. “I couldn’t even get out of bed. I was just crying. I didn’t want to leave my house. I felt like I wanted to crawl out of my own skin… I had never felt anything like it before.”

In 2020, with the support of Dr. Lougheed, Alia was admitted for one week to the inpatient mental health unit in the Nanji Family Mental Health Services, where her care team focused on stabilizing her medication in a safe, supervised environment.

“It was a scary time. My daughter was Googling ‘how to make mom stop crying.’”

That experience marked a turning point. It was a frightening time for her and Alia, however it was also the start of her recovery.

These programs are a lifeline for many of us.

Alia Del Bianco

A place to heal

Following her inpatient stay, Alia began participating in MSH’s mental health programs, including the B.R.I.D.G.E. Day Treatment Program and the Art Therapy Group, while working closely with Oak Valley Health psychiatrist Dr. Shameet Bakshi.

Through these programs and ongoing care, she began to better understand what she was experiencing. “We ruled a lot of things out. It was really my depression and my anxiety that was manifesting,” reflects Alia. “Years of accumulated trauma and stress began to take a toll on both my body and mind.”

The care team behind the Art Therapy Group became an essential part of her journey. During one session, she experienced a panic attack and they stepped in right away.

“I was on the floor, completely distraught. The team was so amazing, helping me through it.”

Alia continued with the programs over the next two years, gradually rebuilding her confidence and starting to feel more hopeful again.

In 2022, just as she was beginning to feel a little more stable, her life changed when she suffered a spontaneous aortic dissection and heart attack. It was a miracle she survived and her recovery was slow, taking months until she was able to even climb a flight of stairs. As she began to feel better physically, her mental health started to decline again as she adjusted to new physical limitations and restrictions. During this time, she felt isolated and turned back to MSH for support.

Support that makes a difference

After speaking with her care team, Alia returned to the programs at MSH, knowing she needed to step out of her own isolation. She returned to the Art Therapy Group and also joined the Interpersonal Psychotherapy Group, where Alia found a renewed sense of purpose and connection with other women who understood what she was going through.

“We were all very supportive of each other. Even though we felt exhausted after, it was in a good way. We knew we were healing.”

Today, she credits these Women’s Wellness programs at MSH’s Nanji Family Mental Health Services as a vital part of her journey forward.

“These programs are a lifeline for many of us — they’re not only a place to come together, they’re also a place to share stories, not feel alone, and to be able to have ways to cope that we can carry with us in our everyday lives. The benefits are so amazing.”

With the support of the Shoppers Drug Mart Run for Women Markham, these programs continue to provide a safe space for women in our community. This year’s run takes place on Sunday, May 24, 2026 at Millennium Park. Funds raised support the Women’s Wellness programs at MSH’s Nanji Family Mental Health Services, helping more patients like Alia access the care they need, when they need it most.

Thanks to the generosity of The Nanji Family Foundation, all donations will be matched up to $50,000 until July 1, 2026, helping your gift go twice as far.

To learn more and donate today, visit:

mshf.on.ca/events/26runforwomen

‍