Each person has experienced struggles in their lives, or have seen loved ones around them go through struggles over the course of their lifetime, and no doubt there are many people who are currently experiencing difficulties.
As each person is a unique individual, with their own personality traits and different upbringing, with a unique set of circumstances as they were raised, not to mention the effects of one’s environment and genes, therefore the struggles that one faces in life is going to be very unique as well.
A special project was organized in Weyburn by three individuals who each experienced different circumstances in their own lives, and they set about to collect stories from people who have or are experiencing mental health issues, or have been affected by mental health issues in the lives of their loved ones.
The project is a book of these stories, entitled, “Breaking the Silence: Our Journeys of Healing”, and contains the accounts from 25 different people, including the three who conceptualized the project: Darren Neuberger, Ramona Iida and Geoff Brown.
These stories cover a broad range of mental health issues, from depression to anxiety, and from bipolar to addictions and suicide by family members or friends.
There will be a launch held for this unique book project, on Thursday, Dec. 7, at Dominic Place, the location of the residence program for the Weyburn Group Homes Society. All of the proceeds from this book will go the Group Homes Society and the residence program.
Organizer Ramona Iida pointed out that the hope is the book will help spark a conversation amongst friends, families and the community at large to share their own stories of issues or struggles that they have gone through, so the conversation doesn’t end with the book, but starts with it.
This is similar to the national mental health initiative, the “Let’s Talk” initiative that Olympic athlete Clara Hughes took on and brought to Weyburn as part of her national cycling tour. Since she did that ride, others have come along to join that initiative, like TV personality Howie Mandel and singer Serena Ryder.
The common message we should take from this book and the “Let’s Talk” campaign is that we need to get past the stigma of mental illness and realize that issues like depression and anxiety are issues that people should become comfortable with and to share with those they care about, and help each other out. — Greg Nikkel
