ARICHAT - Is mental health getting the attention it needs in rural Nova Scotia?

According to the three panelists that joined TELILE 24/7 host Adam Cooke for a candid conversation on the issue at the Telile Community Television studio in Arichat, the current mental health service and treatment system has taken steps forward but still has much to do to keep local residents from falling through the cracks. 

Taylor Linloff, an autism and LGBTQI activist from Port Hawkesbury, took the opportunity to confirm publicly that she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder late last year and has struggled with severe anxiety and depression episodes since that time. 

"I've been on a waiting list for counselling for so long, I forgot I was on a waiting list," Linloff declared in what she described as a "bluntly honest" response to the question of whether mental illness is getting the attention it deserves in the Strait Area. 

"If you're a non-emergency case, you're waiting up to six months for any [mental health] treatment, and if you're an emergency case, you could still be waiting up to seven days for a hospital bed. If you're dealing with something other than anxiety and depression, people don't know how to treat you...There's lack of physical access if you have to drive out of your area to get treatment, or if you can't drive. And so many people who are non-white, non-cisgender, non-men, are still bring ignored in the conversation."

Louisdale's Tyler Shea, a behaviour analyst and early childhood interventionist from Louisdale, was training to allow himself to become certified in mental health treatment three years ago, before recognizing that he himself was struggling with generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, treatment-resistant depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder with intrusive throughs, and suicidal tendencies. Today, the father of two is hopeful that his study of psychedelic means to address such issues can provide an alternative to the traditional Western medical health system.

Meanwhile, Jennie Pardy of Arichat, is a neuro-linguistic practitioner (NLP) and life coach who struggled with depression and generalized anxiety in her younger years. The Telile panel discussion was the first opportunity for Pardy to publicly confirm - even to members of her own family - that she seriously contemplated suicide as a teenager. She is now hopeful that continued conversations on mental health will help local residents recognize that they are not alone in their struggles and need not be stigmatized for their own conditions.