Library to host mental health talk

Leif Gregersen wants to help you weather the storm of mental illness. The well-known and critically acclaimed author and public speaker is set to make a presentation on the subject at the St. Albert Public Library May 2 to mark the start of Mental Health Week.

He will talk about the stigma of mental illness, as well as treatments and what it’s like to live with a psychological disorder. He will also be reading a selection of material from his books to complement the presentation.

The author has been so open about his experiences with bipolar disorder and depression that he has given a face to survival through mental health struggles. In addition to Through the Withering Storm and Inching Back to Sane, his two memoirs about his bipolar disorder, he has made it a personal mission to meet and speak to as many people as possible to show them what mental illness means and how people can deal with it.

He has been giving public presentations, mostly on schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, to school and other groups for the last year or so. He is occasionally accompanied by a medical health professional during these presentations. Often he also interacts with people in the audience who have dealt with their own mental illness or the mental illness of a loved one.

“It’s so rewarding!” he exclaimed. “I go to some of these schools and some of these people have no clue of what people are going through with mental illness. I’ve had grown women break down in the class.”

He is working on making similar presentations to other libraries across the province.

His mission has also taken him to police recruit sessions to give talks on what people dealing with mental illness are going through in order to help them in the course of performing their duties in the public and on the street.

“That’s something that’s so valuable because they’re the people who deal with people who are armed and dangerous when they’re off their medication. We want them to deal with those people with compassion and understanding,” he emphasized. “That’s what it’s all about: trying to encourage compassion and understanding and to reduce the stigma.”

Far from tiring on the subject, Gregersen also contributes to two online mental health magazines: SZ Magazine – a periodical on schizophrenia of which he is also the editor – and Anchor Magazine for overcoming depression, bipolar and anxiety disorders. Both digital quarterlies can be found at www.mentalwellnesstoday.com.

Then there’s the writing class he teaches to people with their own mental health issues. That is held at the Prosper Place Clubhouse in downtown Edmonton. That too is a deeply rewarding experience, he said, because it offers everyone a wonderful chance to really explore creative and effective forms of communication and expression.

“I had no idea how fun it was to be a teacher, and to have responsive, attentive students, and to really feel that you’re teaching something that can benefit them. People with mental health issues are going through very difficult times. I honestly feel that by learning to express themselves better… improves their lives in so many other ways. They communicate with their own selves, their own feelings, and they learn better communication with others. That’s something I really enjoy about the teaching aspect.”

He’s working toward offering poetry workshops to junior high students as well.

Gregersen’s most recent book of fiction, the young adult fantasy novel called In the Blink of an Eye, is doing very well for him too. Right now, he’s promoting the book – his ninth – by offering it for free for the next week or two through www.smashwords.com. It’s also available for borrowing at the St. Albert Public Library, as are his first memoir Inching Back to Sane and other of his fiction titles.

As for the rest of his plans, he is scheduled to give a presentation at a mental health conference in Toronto during the summer and at a Schizophrenia Society conference in Halifax in the fall. People can keep abreast of the author and speaker through his blog at www.edmontonwriter.com or checking out his bibliography at valhallabooks.weebly.com.

Mental Health Week is an annual national event promoted by the Canadian Mental Health Agency. It is meant to encourage all people “to learn, talk, reflect and engage with others on all issues relating to mental health,” according to the organization’s website at www.cmha.ca. Visit www.mentalhealthweek.ca for more information on other events taking place across the country.