Bell Let’s Talk Day
TW: racism, mental health
These are some photos of peaceful vistas I took when I was unwell. They remind me how much I craved calm and how far I have come.
When I experienced my mental health emergency, the White administrators and professors at my university did not see my plight as a mental health issue, but rather, as disruptive behaviour that was subject to a series of disciplinary meetings. Meeting after meeting, my capacity to be successful in the program was questioned and interrogated. Throughout that experience, I sought out counselling services which quickly became ill-equipped to handle my condition. They did not connect me with the critical medical care that I deeply required. Instead, they took diligent notes about my deteriorating condition and failed to act in an effort to silence what could have been a problematic PR issue.
I eventually made it to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health where I received lifesaving care that has allowed me to recover from the episode and return to a gainful life and positive mental health.
The professors and administrators that I cite above had close contact with me and held in their power the ability to connect me with mental healthcare. Their gross negligence put my life at risk. These are industry professionals. It is haunting that they occupy some of the most powerful positions in academia. We should all be terrified and critical of this truth.
They failed me. And so did my so-called friends at that institution. However, the community and family that always believed in me helped me to get back on my feet. I implore those professionals to take notes and self-reflect on their inaction and racism to prevent them from harming students in the future.
This Bell Let’s Talk Day, I continue to share my experience to educate and to inspire change in, what bell hooks famously calls, the White-supremacist-capitalist-patriarchy and the late-stage-capitalistic hellscape we call Western society.
Reach out to friends frequently and be compassionate about what they may be going through. Speaking from experience, even though I was angry and irritable, these emotions came from a deep and complex sense of hurt and trauma. Hold space for them.
I hope my experience can inspire those who can support folks experiencing mental health conditions and be a candle in a dark cave for those who need our help.
