On October 6, 2008, the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre (<- you gotta love those Canadians!), with the support of Manulife Financial, launched Let’s Face This – Confront the Stigma of Mental Illness. As the name suggests, Let’s Face This is a grassroots, web-based campaign to bust stigma and promote public awareness and education about mental health. And – as the name suggests – the campaign really does want you to face this.
When you visit Let’s Face This, you can add your picture to a growing tree of people who – like you – want to help promote public awareness and …read more

Today is World Mental Health Day.
Sometimes I write a post dedicated to particular mental health awareness days, and sometimes I just provide a round up of all the awareness events taking place throughout a particular month.
I chose the former for World Mental Health Day because I stumbled across I Believe: A poem for World Mental Health Day on YouTube this morning, and really wanted to share it.
The poem isn’t specifically geared toward mental health awareness; rather, the awareness of all that is and all that can be good, hopeful, and compassionate in the world. And isn’t that what mental health …read more

Today was the last day for the “Top 5 Ways To Be A Mental Health Advocate” series here at Mental Health Notes.
And, if you missed it, you don’t have to scroll through the site trying to find each post – I’ve rounded them all up for you right here!
Number One: Stop Yourself And Others From Promoting Mental Health Stigma. People with any kind of illness – mental illness included – are up against a lot. Refraining from using stigmatizing words and committing actions that contribute to stigma is a great way to be a mental health advocate!
Number Two: Get Involved …read more

See that cheesing rocker to the right?
Well, he’s the reason I missed Wednesday night’s DEPRESSION: Out of the Shadows on PBS.
I couldn’t help it. I had to watch the American Idol finale. I got really wrapped up in this season, so I had to find out which of the Davids won at the exact moment he won.
Anyway, the good news (aside from David Cook winning American Idol) is that PBS has made it possible for us to watch DEPRESSION: Out of the Shadows online. I hope to do this sometime this weekend, but if anyone beats me to it, feel …read more

If you aren’t already counting down the hours until you find out which of the Davids is going to be the next American Idol (which, I am), turn your channel to your local PBS station tonight at 9 p.m. and watch DEPRESSION: Out of the Shadows, the first 90-minute component of “a multi-dimensional PBS project that explores the disease’s complex terrain, offering a comprehensive and timely examination of this devastating disorder.”
About the Program:
“By weaving together the science and treatment of depression with intimate portrayals of families and individuals coping with its wide-ranging effects, the film raises awareness and eliminates the …read more