Honouring Mental Illness Awareness Week at McGill

October 1-7 is Mental Illness Awareness Week in Canada, a public awareness campaign to help educate the population on the reality of living with mental illness. McGill Student Services is excited to take part in the following activities and programming to honour this important week and help students find support and learn valuable coping tools:

1. Mental Illness Awareness Week: Coping with Anxiety & Depression is a panel discussion organized by SSMU featuring McGill counsellors, the Dean of Students Chris Buddle, and Armaghan Alam from the Peer Support Centre, and moderated by McGill Students’ Chapter of Jack.org. The discussion will aim to debunk common myths surrounding anxiety and depression and highlight the realities of building resiliency and discovering novel coping strategies.
2. Student Wellness (SWELL) Groups are still seeking participants! These psychoeducation groups are facilitated by students with lived mental illness experience and help those with ongoing mental health challenges connect with peers, understand contributors to wellness, and develop self-compassion and a self-care plan. Registration is open throughout October and November.
3. Wellness and Life-Skills workshops offer students the opportunity to learn important wellness tools in a small group setting, and usually in only a few sessions. Topics include Skills for Managing Anxiety and Stress, Mindfulness Meditation, and Skills for Coping with Perfectionism. Register to take part in one of many upcoming sessions.

For more information on Mental Illness Awareness Week, visit the Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health website, or stop by McGill Counselling Services.