About SNW
Canada’s mental health community.
My name is Michael Landsberg. In 2009 I shared my then decade long battle with severe depression on Off the Record (the TV show I hosted on TSN). I was stunned to realize that by simply sharing my illness in a totally open way, and using the platforms I had available to me – I could change people’s lives- perhaps even save them. With that knowledge, in 2016 I founded (with others of course) #SickNotWeak. All of us knew there was a desperate need for it. I am convinced that the mental health stigma stems from the perception of weakness. I am more sure of that today than I was in 2009. I am more knowledgeable today than I was in 2009 and oh yeah, one more thing- I am Sick NOT Weak.
What is #SickNotWeak?
Well, we answer in a few different ways, depending on who is asking. Eventually we end up in the same spot. Some people just need to be eased into it.
To the CEO in the formal business attire- we might say: “#SickNotWeak is a Canadian charitable foundation whose mandate is to change the way people view mental illness.”
To the more casual person- we might say the same thing and add that, “We try to reduce the stigma by cutting through the sanitized, often formal, often corporate, talk to deliver a fresh, personal, often emotional message.”
To the person in sweatpants who hasn’t gone outside in weeks and who has felt isolated and alone in their battle against a horrendous enemy- we say this: “#SickNotWeak speaks your language. Not only do we talk how you talk, but we feel what you feel, and we hurt like you hurt. You are understood.”
SickNotWeak lives to bring comfort to the lonely, hope to the hopeless, and strength to those who believe they are weak. SickNotWeak understands that comfort, hope, and strength seldom come as a result of the number of people around us, but rather, the number of people who understand us.
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