“It's not always going to be pretty or it's not always going to be feeling great, but it's just important to keep putting in the work. It's a little bit every day that at the end will be something greater,” Sophie Tremblay says. It’s a philosophy that has served her well in her cross country ski training and in life. She was born in Sudbury, Ontario and grew up in Ottawa, then Timmins, and now lives in Thunder Bay.

As far as her education, Tremblay went to high school in Ottawa, and went to Lakehead University for two years to study psychology. She transferred to Sudbury to finish her degree at Laurentian University. At first she wanted to study nursing, but she was drawn to how broad psychology was as a discipline and how many branches of study there are to explore. She’s applying to a masters of clinical psychology program and also medical school and she isn’t sure yet where she will end up.

To stay balanced, Tremblay relies on a lot of lists and she’s always writing things down. She surrounds herself with people who share her interests and she likes to exercise and cross country ski. She tries to practice good time management to stay on top of everything.

Her advice for Indigenous students looking to leave their home community to study is to stay connected to their community, culture, traditions and circles at home, while also meeting new ones at their new destination. Tremblay also suggests continuing to practice what's important, like cultural traditions, being surrounded by supportive people like the university’s Indigenous student centre.

For someone who is more shy or introverted, she suggested getting out of your comfort zone, even just with small steps at first if it seems overwhelming. Tremblay recommends reaching out where you’re going in advance or going somewhere a little closer to home. Ultimately, she advises being true to yourself and making sure you have the consistency you need to succeed and a routine to feel grounded. To help with self-regulation when out of one's comfort zone, Tremblay suggests having reminders, breathing exercises, taking time for themselves, or having a phrase to repeat.  

As far as obstacles to overcome, Tremblay left her family and community to go to an English university as a Francophone, which was hard after doing all her school in French. Learning to write everything in English was overwhelming, as was getting to be confident enough to speak her mind. It’s something that she’s found comes in time and with learning not to worry about what other people think. Surrounding oneself with supportive people can also be helpful for getting brave enough to speak up.  

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When it comes to inspiration, Tremblay looks to the people around her, her family, and her community. She looks to their resilience and motivation to achieve and she finds motivation to work towards her own goals as well. If she could give a message to her younger self it would be,

“It's okay if your path is different than other people's journey. It's normal and everyone's different. It doesn't mean that you won't accomplish the things that you're striving for, but just means that everyone's path is different. Everyone will go at their own pace and just be happy with where you are. Enjoy the journey to where you're going, and don’t feel as rushed to accomplish everything and to be where everyone else is. Your time will come.”  

Her advice for someone struggling on their path would be, “Take a second and just think about what you want to do and how to get there, and make sure that you're doing things that really make you and not others happy, and to really enjoy the moment and enjoy what's happening right now. Just take a breath. Everything just feels so rushed nowadays. Just remember to be where you are now and really enjoy your time with your friends and family and really feel the support of your community.”

To maintain her mental wellness, Tremblay pays attention to her time management so she can juggle what she needs to and use the resources that are available to her. She finds the Indigenous academic advisor at the Indigenous centre helpful. She also talks to her family and consults with them and exercises for stress relief. She spends time connecting with nature when she’s nervous to ground herself.

Coming from a family of cross country skiers, her parents made sure she explored sports growing up. Cross country skiing is what she connected most with and she raced competitively, joining a club and training in Ottawa. She also found a Metis Indigenous sporting community and skied at both universities she attended. She also does roller skiing in the summer to prepare for the winter.  Tremblay has had the chance to represent Canada and Ontario at races and she’s enjoyed the opportunities she’s had. Entering her final year of racing, she’s reflecting on all the life lessons she’s learned and the people she’s met along the way.

She loves getting outside, working hard, having fun and coming back feeling more efficient. As a competitive person, she loves racing.

The life lessons she’s learned have been that everyone's path is different, she’s learned resilience and patience, that not everything happens overnight and that you have to work for things and you might not always notice progress but the hard work is always going somewhere. She’s learned to be true to herself and focus on what helps her, makes her feel best and happy.

Sophie Tremblay knows in skiing and in life that it's not always going to be pretty or feel great, but she needs to keep putting in the work. A little bit every day will lead to something greater, whether it’s studying for psychology exams or training with her team. She might not know yet where she will end up, if it will be more psychology or med school, but she knows how she wants to live her life and honour who she is inside.

Thanks to Alison Tedford for writing this article!