Look Again: Mental Illness Re-Examined

Most people have seen movies or TV shows that have used schizophrenia as part of their story. But how often do we stop to think about what those representations actually mean or look like? Do they portray the experience of people living with schizophrenia accurately? As studies have shown, schizophrenia is one of the conditions that the general public views most negatively and generates a lot of stigma. Societal stigma is one aspect, but for those living with serious mental illnesses like schizophrenia, there's an additional challenge of managing their own internalized stigma when it comes to being diagnosed with schizophrenia. However, there are people living with schizophrenia who are trying to change that. One of those people is Adria Roberts, who works as a mental health peer support worker. It's a job she says gave her hope and helped her regain her life after her diagnosis. In this episode, she shares how she came to terms with her diagnosis.
Resources:

• Lost in Reality: Hearing Voices - Adria Roberts' TEDxChilliwack Talk
• Read: Into the Eye of the Storm - The Chilliwack Times (pp: 1, 23)
• Follow Adria on Twitter: @adria_the
• Watch Adria on CBC's 'You Can’t Ask That' – S2E4: Schizophrenia

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If you’re the child of a parent who lives with mental illness, you can be faced with a lot of tough challenges. You may feel overwhelmed, sad, scared or even angry. You may resent your parent for not being like the other parents. Or you could also wind up as a caregiver and try to fix everything. In her lifetime, Dr. Grace Cho, author of her memoir Tastes Like War, says she has had three mothers. The mother of her childhood, before schizophrenia. The mother of her adolescence, a woman who is visibly deteriorating mentally. And the mother now, a woman trapped by schizophrenia and the voices and delusions that it brings. In this episode, Dr. Cho reflects on her journey from teenager to adulthood and how her mother’s schizophrenia shaped the direction of her life and her work. She talks about the social factors that left her mother feeling vulnerable and the stigma that prevented her from getting treatment. And how she found a way to build a loving relationship and connect with her mother.
Resources:
Grace Cho's Book: Tastes Like War
KIC Children's BookletKelty Mental Health Resource CentreSupporting Children of Parents with Mental Illness in the Classroom (Heretohelp)

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In many cultures around the world, mental illness is still highly stigmatized and rarely talked about. Today, we’ll be taking a closer look at how mental illness is viewed and talked about in the South Asian Community, one of the largest ethno-cultural groups in Canada. Talking about mental illness, getting help, or even getting diagnosed is hindered by generational gaps, language barriers, and perceived taboos, just to name a few.

In this episode, we’ll hear four voices sharing their personal experiences of serious mental illness within the South Asian Community, and speak to Kulpreet Singh, founder of the South Asian Mental Health Alliance. Since 2010, Kulpreet has been tackling these disparities and trying to raise awareness and reduce stigma around mental health -- and serious mental illnesses like schizophrenia by leveraging the expertise and influence of second-generation South Asian Canadians.

This is going to be an honest talk about how culture can play a role in how mental illnesses are seen and treated, in particular within the South Asian community.

Resources for show notes:

• South Asian Mental Health Alliance
• Advocates call for more targeted mental health support for South Asian Community during pandemic (CBC News)
• Silence on mental illness nearly killed Karandeep Gill. Now her honest is helping others (CTV News)
• Need to Culturally Adapt and Improve Access to Evidence-Based Psychosocial Interventions for Canadian South-Asians: A Call to Action (Community Journal of Mental Health)

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It's a hard reality that mental illness and substance use often coincide. Combine these factors with poverty and social marginalization, and you have the snowballing problem known as "concurrent disorders." Dr. Bill MacEwan has spent the last 20+ years working with patients in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, a neighbourhood that is home to around 20,000 people with almost 25% of the people suffering from mental illness. He's also the medical lead for the city's Downtown Community Court psychiatric teams. Host Faydra Aldridge speaks with Dr. MacEwan about the intersection of mental illness, drugs, and the criminal justice system.
Additional Resources:

• Dr. Bill MacEwan Bio
• Mental illness and significant cognitive impairment among marginalized adults in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside
• Profound suffering at the heart of our beautiful city seems to defy all attempts to relieve it
• The Hotel Study: Multimorbidity in a Community Sample Living in Marginal Housing
• Building Community Society - for more details about next steps
• Visions Journal: Concurrent Disorders (2004, Vol 2 (1))
• Homelessness, Mental Health and Substance Use: Understanding the Connections (Canadian Institute of Substance Use Research)

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"Look Again: Mental Illness Re-Examined” is a groundbreaking new podcast brought to you by the BC Schizophrenia Society and supporting partners. The podcast brings forward the humanity of mental illness while dispelling the myths by sharing the voices of medical experts, family members, and people with lived experience with mental illness.

Host Faydra Aldridge, CEO of BCSS, speaks with medical experts, families, and people with lived experience of mental illness to dispel myths and get to the truth. Be prepared for frank conversations, up-to-date medical information, immersive sound design, and stories of hope and resilience. This podcast is for anyone whose life has been touched by mental illness. In other words, it’s for everyone.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.