notmyself

The front page for the website of the "Not Myself Today" campaign

Through the month of April, Canadians are encouraged to take part in an online campaign to help change the way we think about and support mental health.

"Mental illness is a cause that is relegated to the shadows," said Jeff Moat, the President of Partners for Mental Health, who have started a month-long national campaign called "Not Myself Today".

"It doesn't receive its reasonable share of funding when compared to other illnesses in terms of the number of people with mental illness and the economic impact of mental illness, it is severely underfunded," he added. "To date, there has been little public reaction to the situation, in part, because those suffering from mental illness and their family members are afraid to speak out because of the stigma and discrimination."

According to Partners for Mental Health, seven million people across Canada will experience a mental health issue this year, but only a third of those living with mental illness are likely to seek and receive the services they need.

"We feel that in order to address this problem, we'll require the collective and concerted efforts of many individuals, organizations and governments, which, essentially, we're talking a social movement, to overcome the obstacles and drive transformative change," Moat added. "If we look to other illnesses or disease states, take cancer, breast cancer or AIDS, that have been successful at affecting change, generating research funds and infulencing government, we see that their success has come about as a result of a large, active social movement, and the time has come to rally Canadians across the country in order to acheive similar successes and support for the mental health cause."

"Not Myself Today" encourages Canadians to go online to sign a pledge for mental health, and also pin their mood on a virtual map of Canada. Moat says since the campaign started on April 2nd, over 5000 pledges have been taken across Canada.

"It'll take you less than 30 seconds to do," Moat added. "By doing so, you signal to other Canadians and to our elected officials that mental health is something that is important to you as an individual, it's important to our families, and it can no longer be ignored. We're all touched by it, and that's why we're all pledging our support to improve mental health in Canada.

You can take part by visiting notmyselftoday.ca until April 30th.

Colin Powers talked with Partners for Mental Health President Jeff Moat about the "Not Myself Today" campaign: