Elephant in the Room Enters an Exciting New Chapter

Mood Disorders Society of Canada is proud to unveil the next evolution of Elephant in the Room (EITR) as the campaign marks its 20th anniversary. With a refreshed brand, expanded resources, and a renewed focus on action, EITR is evolving beyond awareness to empower individuals, workplaces, schools, and communities to reduce stigma and advance mental health accessibility across Canada. Read our media release to learn more about the campaign’s new direction and what’s ahead.

Supporting Veterans and their Family Members

We are pleased to offer Veterans and their Family Members free services and supports. This is a reminder of our summer offerings as we are working on our fall and winter services now:

• Peer Support Workshops – are facilitated by MDSC’s Peer and Trauma Support Services (PATSS) team of Veterans and Veteran Family Members, delivered remotely through zoom, these workshops are highly rated for satisfaction and relevance – register today!
• Veteran Volunteer Hub – provides the Veteran and Family Member with volunteer opportunities to giveback in the Veteran community, it also provides other Veteran organizations an opportunity to promote their volunteer roles. Sign up to give-back!
• Companionship Calls – receive a social call from another Veteran! …. Or ….sign up to make those calls!
• First Step Series – The ‘First Step’ program uses real talk about real issues of mental illness and how to take the first step to recovery. Join the lunch and learn scheduled for August 19th or take the self-pace training. Both are hosted by Michael Landsberg and the program has been highly rated by the Veteran community.  

View program brochures: English and français.

The Insomnia Project

Insomnia Workplace Program is happening: 100% of participants in our Insomnia Workplace Education Program reported learning something new — and many were surprised to discover that insomnia is more than just difficulty falling asleep, a common misconception among Canadians.

Our interactive sessions, adaptable to each organization and audience, are now running across large companies that are proactively investing in their teams’ mental health and productivity by addressing sleep and insomnia head on. These sessions are sparking real conversations and real change in how employers support their employees.

Interested in bringing this program to your organization? Book a session.

Bring Insomnia to the conversation: Trouble falling asleep? Waking up at 3am and staring at the ceiling? You’re not alone — and it might be more common (and more treatable) than you think.

If this sounds familiar, our microsite can help you. It has information and resources that can help you to better understand insomnia We regularly add new content to support people living with sleep difficulties.

Take the first step toward recognizing that insomnia is a serious health issue — and learning how to better understand and manage it – by visiting our microsite. Explore the hub: https://mdsc.ca/edu/insomnia/

Raising awareness about sleep health across our community:

Through our social media channels, we continue to share content that helps Canadians better understand the impact of sleep on mental health, physical health, and daily functioning.

We address common myths about insomnia treatment, including the belief that alcohol or cannabis-based products support restful sleep, or that good sleep hygiene routines alone can solve insomnia. These habits can disrupt sleep quality over time, and the right treatment should be guided by a healthcare professional and tailored to each person’s needs.

Insomnia should never be underestimated or undertreated. Didn’t know this? Learn more through our social media channels. Visit us on Facebook.

If you found it helpful, feel free to like and share it with your network.

Join the #SickNotWeak Community

#SickNotWeak continues to be a growing movement dedicated to breaking down the stigma surrounding mental illness through honest conversations, lived experience, education, and advocacy. Whether you’re looking for resources, inspiring stories, or ways to get involved, we invite you to explore everything #SickNotWeak has to offer at SickNotWeak.com.

Stay connected and be part of the conversation by following #SickNotWeak on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, X, Bluesky, where you’ll find the latest news, campaign updates, community stories, and opportunities to engage. Together, we can continue challenging stigma and building a more supportive and inclusive Canada.

Access to Medications for Mental Illness

For more than a decade, MDSC has been advocating to improve access to medications for mental illness for those Canadians in need. Our work has had diverse real-world impacts including: 

Canada’s Drug Agency’s (CDA-AMC) Mental Health Listening Tour (2023-24): CDA-AMC undertook a national listening tour to better understand patient/People With Lived Experience (PWLE), caregiver, clinician and industry perspectives on its drugs for mental illness evaluation processes, helping to inform future engagement and decision-making approaches. 

Inclusion of psychiatric clinical expertise in decision-making (2024): In 2024, CDA-AMC added a psychiatrist to its decision-making committee, marking an important step toward integrating mental illness specific clinical expertise into the reimbursement deliberations. 

Integration of live PWLE in deliberations (2025): For the first time, a PWLE of mental illness contributed their perspective live during a CDA-AMC deliberative committee meeting, representing a meaningful advancement in patient engagement within formal health technology assessment processes. 

MDSC’s presentation at CDA-AMC Symposium (2024-2026): MDSC had the opportunity to present its work at two consecutive CDA-AMC Symposia. In 2024, MDSC showcased the findings of its report, System Broken: How Public Drug Coverage is Failing Canadians with Mental Illness in a scientific poster. In 2026, during the panel presentation Blind Spots and Bias in HTA: Patient-Centred Drug Assessment to Unlock Better Psychiatric Drug Access, the Access to Medications for Mental illness Working Group MDSC has been leading to tackle this issue unveiled a Value Considerations Framework it developed. 

MIRA 7.0 – Your Personal Assistant to Mental Health Resources

Pathway to Benefits

Advocacy

MDSC continues to advocate for increased mental health services to address the rising impact of mental illness in Canada. Over the winter, we held our Hill Day meetings with members of Parliament, Senators, policy staff and department leads. Our message is clear and consistent: to continue to build a strong Canada, we must ensure we look after the physical and mental health of all citizens. With the overall costs of mental illness estimated between $180 and $200 billion per year, we need to better support and coordinate our mental health system nationally.

MDSC has submitted our 2026 pre-budget submission, including three priorities we believe will help make a difference. Please go to our page and submit a letter to your MP in support.