Supporting Veterans and their Family Members

We are proud to offer Veterans and their Family Members 9 unique and complimentary services and supports at no cost.

Thank you to Veterans Affairs Canada, The Royal Canadian Legion (Dominion), and The Ontario Government (Seniors Community Grant Program), for their financial support, making it possible for us to offer the following programs and resources:

• Level 1 – Introduction to Peer Support: Facilitated by MDSC’s Peer and Trauma Support Services (PATSS) team, delivered remotely through zoom.

 

• Level 2 – Applied Peer Support Workshop: Facilitated by MDSC’s PATSS team, delivered remotely through zoom.

 

• Veteran Volunteer Hub: Provides the Veteran and Family Member with volunteer opportunities to give back in the Veteran community, also provides other Veteran organizations an opportunity to promote their volunteer roles.

 

• Companionship Calls: Sign up to receive a social call from another Veteran! …. Or sign up to make those calls!

 

• Mental Health Resources: Provides those who would like with meaningful knowledge about a variety of mental health focus areas.

 

• Three Mental Health Seminars: We are offering three nation-wide mental health webinars this winter! Join us for:
• Our Journey in Mental Health on January 29, 2026;
• Recent Advances in Treatment Research on Feb 8, 2026 and
• Mental Health Programs on March 26, 2026.

 

• First Step online Webinar Series – with Michael Landsberg: The ‘First Step’ program uses real talk about real issues of mental illness and how to take the first step to recovery. This is program is delivered through a series of self learning modules and is extremely pertinent to the Veteran community.

View program brochures: English and français.

Pathway to Benefits

Access to Medications for Mental Illnesses

MDSC remains committed to ensuring that all Canadians can access the medications they need. After the launch of our white paper (System Broken) and dissemination of our Health System Roundtable Recommendations, MDSC established a cross-sector Working Group (WG) this year.

Following our first multi-stakeholder WG meeting in June 2025, and additional WG meetings since then, MDSC has continued to lead this collaborative effort to address gaps in access to drug therapies for mental illness. The WG brings together 15 dedicated members, with perspectives that include: persons with lived experience, physicians, a psychiatric nurse practitioner, a psychopharmacologist, government and Ministry of Health representatives, public and private reimbursement decision-maker representatives, industry partners, HTA representatives, and another health advocacy organization. Throughout 2025, WG members have been co-developing a guidance document defining what is “clinically meaningful” for individuals living with mental illness, ensuring that patient perspectives and recovery-oriented outcomes are at the core of evaluation frameworks. The WG is now focusing on translating this understanding into actionable recommendations for governmental bodies, exploring how these insights can improve access to psychiatric medications, and will conduct key informant interviews to validate the guidance and gather additional diverse perspectives. In a first step around knowledge translation of its work, the WG also submitted an abstract for the CDA-AMC Symposium in 2026.

The Insomnia Project

Despite affecting millions, insomnia; marked by persistent sleep difficulties and daytime exhaustion, remains widely misunderstood and often overlooked as a serious mental health concern. MDSC’s Insomnia Awareness Project continues to address this issue through three major initiatives:

• Microsite: Our national insomnia hub, insomnia.mdsc.ca, is now live. It serves as a one-stop resource for information on insomnia, sleep health, treatment options, and tools.

 

• Workplace Program: Through tailored presentations and resources, MDSC is helping employers and employees better understand the impact of insomnia on mental health and productivity. Presentations are now being rolled out across Canada. If you know of a company/employer that would be interested in our free session, please contact info@mdsc.ca.

 

• Media Campaign: Launched in late October, the national campaign brings to light the day-to-day realities and real-life impact of insomnia on Canadians, featuring stories from People With Lived Insomnia Experience, and their health care providers. The campaign resulted in 106 media stories, with a total of 112 million impressions. You can read/view/listen to some of the stories on our microsite (see bottom of “About Insomnia” page).

 

Please visit us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, or BlueSky and re-share across your socials. And, if you have insomnia and want to share your story, please reach out to us at info@mdsc.ca.

Defeat Depression

The 2025 Defeat Depression campaign had a great finish, involving both the May Defeat Depression events and the August Canal Pursuit initiative. Over $250,000 was raised to support better mental health care in Canada! A huge shout out to the Sudbury team who topped the community fundraising leaderboard!

The Canal Pursuit for Mental Health successfully passed its goal, greatly boosted by local support from figures like the Mayor of Trenton and MPP Barrett in Kemptville, as well as in-kind advertising from Cogeco.

These combined impressive results highlight the growing reach and continuous financial impact of the campaign across Canada. We wish to thank all 2025 sponsors — VALE, AbbVie, CN, Eisai, IMC, Depression Hurts, Lundbeck, Webs9, and Pfizer. MDSC proudly celebrated its community champions by handing out awards to the Top Fundraising Team and Top Fundraiser, honoring the exceptional dedication that powered the campaign’s success. Thank you to all who participated and donated! Your action helps bring better mental health care to community organizations across Canada.

Preparations for the 2026 campaign are well underway. The national campaign team has increased its volunteer base which means we can engage participants in new ways, with a focus on securing new campus events and increasing youth participation by engaging post-secondary institutions. Planning is right on track and communities already joining for events to be held on Saturday, May 30, 2026. We invite you to connect and join the campaign wherever you are located.

MDSC Partner Spotlight: Gastrointestinal (GI) Society

Gastrointestinal diseases and disorders are extremely common, affecting about 2 in 3 Canadians. These includes conditions such as:

• inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), primarily Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis
• irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
• celiac disease
• C. difficile infection
• gastroparesis
• functional dyspepsia
• gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
• obesity
• and many others

 

There is a wide variety of symptoms and complications caused by gut diseases and disorders, including chronic pain, diarrhea, constipation, bloating, nausea and vomiting, heartburn and regurgitation, malnutrition, fatigue, surgical complications, and much, much more.

Gut Conditions are Life-Altering

Gut conditions can be devastating, life-changing, and isolating. People living with these conditions often withdraw from social activities and can have trouble maintaining employment or attending school because of a combination of persistent pain, trouble eating normally, and needing to stay near toilets due to diarrhea, constipation, or vomiting. The embarrassing nature of the symptoms compounds the issues, as it can be difficult to talk about how much they are suffering.

There is also a robust communication system between the gut and the central nervous system, called the gut-brain axis, which the gut microbiome strongly influences.

Mental Health and the Gut

Due to these factors, it isn’t surprising that many struggle with mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, insomnia, and stress. To further complicate things, these mental health issues can in turn worsen the digestive symptoms, leading to a relentless cycle of illness.

In our most recent Unmet Needs in IBD survey, 82% of respondents indicated that they have mental health conditions, 57% had an anxiety disorder, and 33% had a mood disorder. In our IBS Survey, 71% of respondents experienced anxiety sometimes, often, or always, 27% had an anxiety disorder, and 32% had a mood disorder.

About the GI Society

We’re committed to improving the lives of people with gastrointestinal and liver conditions, including obesity, supporting research, advocating for appropriate patient access to healthcare, and promoting health.

We are working to ensure healthcare providers, government decision-makers, and people living with these conditions understand the vital importance of treating all aspects of GI diseases and disorders, with particular attention to improving mental health.

Learn more about digestive conditions and mental health at badgut.org/mental-health.

Join our Support Group for Mind-Gut Health.