With practical tools and peer support, Cassie + Friends is helping kids face painful treatments.
When four-year-old Brooklyn was diagnosed with juvenile arthritis, her family quickly learned that treatment would mean more than doctor visits and physical therapy — it would mean learning to give weekly injections at home.
“I never imagined becoming a nurse overnight,” says her mom, Tamara. “We knew the medicine was needed to help protect her joints — but when the needle came out, fear took over.”
Over the past year, Brooklyn has taken more than 70 doses of prednisone, endured countless needle pokes, and faced 45 consecutive days of high fevers. She missed nearly three months of her first year of kindergarten, turning her young life upside down.
I never imagined becoming a nurse overnight. We knew the medicine was needed to help protect her joints — but when the needle came out, fear took over.
Finding comfort through support
Brooklyn’s family isn’t alone. For thousands of kids across Canada, regular injections are what keep them active and included in life. But the fear and pain surrounding treatment can make every dose a source of stress.
That’s where Cassie + Friends comes in. As Canada’s only charity dedicated to families affected by juvenile arthritis and other rheumatic diseases, Cassie + Friends helps kids turn fear into confidence so they can get the treatment they need.
Through partnerships with specialty clinics for kids with arthritis and related diseases across Canada, Cassie + Friends provides Injection Support Kits with tools like numbing creams, shot blockers, Buzzy Bees, and a letter from a youth mentor to remind kids they’re not alone.
“Before the kit, every injection ended in tears,” Tamara says. “Now she takes a deep breath and says, ‘I’ve got this.’”
These simple supports can make the difference between a child refusing treatment and one who feels empowered to continue. For kids like Brooklyn, adherence means staying in school, playing with friends, and doing the things they love.
Caring for the whole family
Up to 40 per cent of children and youth living with rheumatic diseases experience mental health challenges such as anxiety, depression, or panic disorder. Cassie + Friends’ Family Navigation and Youth Mentorship Programs ensure no family faces those challenges alone — connecting parents and kids with trusted information, peer support, and practical help.
Cassie + Friends also co-funded $480,000 in new mental health research with Brain Canada, including an eight-week mindfulness program led by pediatric rheumatologist Dr. Roberta Berard of the Children’s Hospital at London Health Sciences Centre that helps families manage stress and build confidence.
“Mindfulness offers families evidence-based tools to calm anxiety and reconnect with their bodies,” says Dr. Berard. “By partnering with Cassie + Friends, we hope to make these supports accessible to families across Canada.”
Mindfulness offers families evidence-based tools to calm anxiety and reconnect with their bodies. By partnering with Cassie + Friends, we hope to make these supports accessible to families across Canada.
Dr. Roberta Berard
Pediatric Rheumatologist,
Children’s Hospital at London Health Sciences Centre
Building a national movement of confidence, care, and urgency
From Family Days and Youth Mentorship Programs to #KidsCantWait, our national early diagnosis and awareness campaign, Cassie + Friends is building a Canada-wide community of confidence and care — driven by urgency, because when it comes to kids’ health, every day counts. It replaces fear with knowledge, anxiety with calm, and isolation with connection.
Join our Fear to Confidence campaign to help more kids like Brooklyn face treatment — and life — with confidence.
Learn more and donate at cassieandfriends.ca/confidence or follow Cassie + Friends on Instagram, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
