Bell’s Let’s Talk Day 2012: Join the conversation on mental health

Finding ways to de-stigmatize mental illness and promoting mental health is one of the key topics I’m very passionate about. When Isabella and I were looking for funding for Mental Health Camp one of the sources we considered was Bell, as they are strong promoters of mental health awareness campaigns. Their flagship campaign features Canadian Olympian superstar Clara Hughes, who battled depression for two years and has been an ardent advocate of mental health in Canada and is the spokesperson for the Bell Let’s Talk Day campaign, which takes place on February 8th.

There are many misconceptions and fears about what mental health means in the context of home, work and school. Often it is the elephant in the room that no one wants or knows how to talk about. Bell Let’s Talk Day is about recognizing that and the fact that talking about mental health is the first step in making a difference in the lives of all Canadians so… let’s talk

You can participate in many ways, join the conversation on February 9th. A very strong focus of Bell’s Let’s Talk Day is de-stigmatizing, which I really appreciate.

To drive progress in reducing stigma, a new campaign called Bell Let’s Talk is opening the national conversation about mental illness and its dramatic impact in all parts of the country. Stepping forward as Bell’s spokesperson for Bell Let’s Talk Day and our campaign to effect change is six-time Olympic medalist Clara Hughes. As a community leader and philanthropist who has come to know and inspire Canadians, Clara has seen the impact of mental illness and understands how important it is to get people talking about it around kitchen and boardroom tables.

Joining Clara as spokespeople for Bell Let’s Talk Day and to help grow the dialogue on mental health this year are composer and performer Stefie Shock and actor-comedian Michel Mpambara.

On February 8, 2012, Bell will lead the conversation to reduce stigma with the launch of Bell Let’s Talk Day – a national campaign which will raise awareness about mental health across Canada each year. For every text message and long distance call made by Bell customers that day, Bell will contribute 5¢ to programs dedicated to mental health.