You’ve come a long way…

Hi Mike

I met your sister at our union congress this week. We were in the same work group and she recognized me from the days of me being the security guard at the Allan Memorial Institute. We talked briefly but I could not place you right off the bat. She gave me your card and I looked up your site. Lo and behold, a face to the name and I said to myself “It’s that guy”. We used to have a lot of talks at my desk area in the main entrance.

I went through your website and man I can say one thing, you’ve come a long way and I am proud to say I have known you. The work you are doing is fantastic, grass root and to the point.

Mike, keep up the great work you are doing. You are an irreplaceable asset. This mission you have taken on, I realize helps you also but helps so many to cope and overcome the stigma of mental illness.

In closing, be strong, continue the good fight and continue to give this great gift you have to offer.

Sincerely,
Michael Paul Kofira
Security Officer, Allan Memorial Institute, Delegate RVH CSN

Mental Health Activity Centers: Serving New Brunswickers
It’s Mental Health Week. Eugene LeBlanc is President of the New Brunswick Mental Health Activity Centers. YourNet recently caught up with Mr. LeBlanc to talk about the important work happening at almost 30 centers around the province.
(YourNet story page)
Eugene LeBlanc: President of the New Brunswick Mental Health Activity Center Association.
YourNet: How many mental health activity centers are there in New Brunswick and what role do they play?
Eugene: There are currently 15 under RHA Vitalité and 12 under RHA Horizon for a total of 27 activity centers in New Brunswick. The purpose of these centers is to give people, who are often excluded by the market economy by reasons of their mental health, the opportunity to access a social life by fostering community inclusion and belonging.

YourNet: How do these centers balance being community-based while following the mandate of the Department of Health and delivering services in a co-ordinated and consistent way within New Brunswick’s mental health policy framework?
Eugene: Activity Centers operate outside the clinical setting and so for folks who seek complimentary services in terms of community integration, these centers are part of an overall planning framework for mental health policy in New Brunswick.
YourNet: What are some of the positive things being accomplished at our Mental Health Activity Centers?
Eugene: Many gems of accomplishment occur at these places. The most basic one is the awareness and admission that your peer is your equal. I hurt and you hurt, so let’s figure out what we can do to help each other.

We hold an annual bowling tournament and a Jamboree. We also produce Canada’s most renowned survivor publication – Our Voice / Notre Voix which has given a voice to mental health’s voiceless since 1987. In 2008, we published Dare to Imagine: From Lunatics to Citizens which details New Brunswick’s history in mental health care over the last 200 years. Activity Centers are also interconnected with the New Brunswick Mental Health Consumer Network where they advocate for a better quality of life for those excluded from mainstream society.

YourNet: There must be challenges too?
Eugene: Funding is always an issue as well as burnout from leaders.

YourNet: We understand that you have benefited from the services offered at community-based mental health activity centers.
Eugene: I became director of my activity center (Groupe de support émotionnel inc. in Moncton) in 1987. I was not very well at the time, but through my responsibilities and support from my equals, I overcame much and I realized that this work was my calling. In 2003, I was given the New Brunswick Human Rights Award for my grass roots contributions in mental health.

YourNet: A lot of people don’t want to talk about mental illness and many don’t want to admit that they or a family member are suffering from this kind of affliction.
Eugene: The shame of mental illness still prevails, but another form of shame that we rarely discuss is the life-marking experiences that psychiatric care can give people at times. Hospitalization, name calling via a diagnosis, overmedication, isolation and these sort things can scar people for life. I see it everyday! We need to speak out against such injustices.

YourNet: Most cancer survivors are proud to tell people their stories. But most people who have survived serious mental health episodes are more likely to keep their stories to themselves. Why is that?
Eugene: I think that is improving because now we are hearing people talk about their stories. Some are writing books on their experiences, producing plays, doing stand-up comedy and other things. It is very healing to be validated when you share your story with others. The ‘tell your story’ thing is increasingly getting contagious and more people seem to want to partake in this.

YourNet: What can we do as a society to help people with mental illness?
Eugene: We should never be content with our listening abilities because we can always improve listening to the coded messages that people are telling us. If we were better at decoding people’s cry and then acting upon it we could prevent much pain and mental agony.

YourNet: New Brunswick is committed to developing a new Mental Health Action Plan. What are some of the things you would like to see in that strategy?
Eugene: I will limit my shopping list to two items. First, we need to acknowledge that the state can’t care for every emotional problem encountered by the citizenry. When the province intervenes it often transforms the problem into a medical one, creating dependency and consuming resources which are best directed toward the most serious cases.

My second improvement would be that to create substantial changes in mental health; we need to put more media tools in the hands of those living with psychiatric experiences, so the message of grass roots realities can permeate mainstream society. Our Voice / Notre Voix is an example, but much more could be done in terms of publishing and broadcasting through new technologies. These kinds of innovations create an internal economy and propel people to own the solutions for their personal and collective mental health. Society and the mental health system would also benefit because it would educate everyone on various topics relating to mental health and create more awareness on the determinants of health.

YourNet: Thanks for taking time to talk with us. Is there anything else you would like to add?
Eugene: Thank you for giving me this opportunity to speak about activity centers and to articulate some of my hopes and visions for mental health.
(Introduction, à la une de VotreNet)

I’ve known Mike for a very long time. I first met him in grade 1 at our elementary school and we’ve been friends ever since. I’ve seen Mike go through good times and bad times as well as several relapses.

I remember his first relapse after his father died. At the time, I did not know he had a mental illness; I only knew he was too sick to come to school. The first time I was involved in one of Mike’s relapses I was seventeen. At the time, I knew very little about mental illness and I had no idea if Mike was going to get better or if it was even possible for him to get better.

Mike was able to take control of his illness and has not had a major relapses since 1995. Mike sees his doctor on a regular basis and takes his medication, but the main reason for his success is his attitude and the conscious effort he makes to stay well. Mike has adjusted his lifestyle to prevent relapses and all the meanwhile he was able to lead a normal life. He has a family a home and an active social life.

Jack Novielli