People need to talk about mental illness to ensure the issue isn’t kept in the closet, said the executive director of Thunder Bay’s mental health association.
Bell Canada launched its Let’s Talk Day on Wednesday in part of its five-year, $50 million nation-wide mental health initiative. The Let’s Talk campaign attempts to create dialogue that is more open for those who are dealing with mental health issues.
Maurice Fortin, executive director of Canadian Mental Health Association Thunder Bay Branch, said there’s a lot of stigma around mental health, which makes most people uncomfortable about talking about it. Bell Canada’s initiative will help create the momentum necessary to get the dialogue moving, he said.
"People are simply not talking about it," Fortin said. "My perspective on the issue is that we should be thinking about mental illness as a health issue like any other health issue. If we’re willing to talk about diabetes, cancer, heart disease, we should be willing and open to talk about mental illness. We really just need to get comfortable talking about."
Because of the stigma more people seem comfortable talking about a cancer diagnosis than they do about their mental health issues, he said.
Thunder Bay’s Mental Health Association helps about 2,000 per year who have various mental health issues. Fortin said the number of people with mental health problems has increased but the reason for this increase is complicated.
"We’re having lots of conversations about addiction issues. I think mental health and addiction issues go hand-in-hand," he said. "But I think the world has become more complicated and there are different stressors out there: both parents work, some of those parents work more than one job and I think there is more pressure on kids."
While one day might not create that open dialogue, he said it’s a beginning.
Mary Deacon, chair of Bell Mental Health Initiative, said the company saw an urgent need and decided to help. While the campaign only started in September 2010, so far things have gone well.
One in five Canadians suffer from a mental illness in their lifetime," Deacon said in a phone interview with tbnewswatch.com. "Mental illness costs the Canadian economy $51 billion annually. Suicide is the second leading cause of death amongst young people between the ages of 16 and 25. Bell looked at this state of affairs and said here’s an issue that is in need of corporate involvement, support and leadership."
The $50 million will go toward a variety of programs that fit into the four pillars of the campaign – anti-stigma, workplace, research, care and access.
