Are you or someone you know affected by mental illness?

Are you seeking an opportunity to make a difference in the lives of Canadians struggling with their mental health?

The Mood Disorders Society of Canada (MDSC) Youth Advisory Council is a network of students from colleges and universities across the country, aimed at engaging young adults in discussions about mental health in their own age demographic.

We are seeking young adults to:

• To meet (virtually) every month.
• To discuss mental health issues & consult on MDSC initiatives.
• To create resources for young adults about mental health and accessing mental health services.
• To participate in fundraising for peer-based mental health resources and programs.

Today’s youth and students are the future leaders of society – it is our actions that will shape the future of mental health care and societal perception of mental health. We must work together to create acceptance of mental illness and make decision-makers aware that mental health services are necessary and need to be accessible to everyone.

Let’s work together to create a more progressive society that accepts that mental health is health!

All proceeds from the purchase of our designs will go towards funding council initiatives!

We want to feature your work!

Do you enjoy drawing, painting, photography, or writing?

Do you want to share your artistic work and raise mental health awareness at the same time?

If you have any photos that make you happy or messages you want to share, we would love to showcase them on our shop.

In addition to our Core Advisory members and Consulting Members below, we are thankful to the many dozen volunteers who assist MDSC and our NYAC with our work, projects, and advocacy every year. Thank you for being part of this team.

Joshua Bell | Council Co-Chair
He/Him, Hamilton, Ontario

Joshua is a mental health and suicide prevention advocate from Hamilton, Ontario, in his third year at McMaster University. Always being an active member of his community, Joshua continues working to advocate to ensure a better life for everyone in his community with a main focus on mental health and suicide prevention.

Passionate about mental health and the well-being of others, Joshua has been an active youth mental health advocate and has worked to help not only raise awareness but also push for changes to improve the mental health of youth. This includes a community association he started and operated between 2020 and 2024, advocating for the successful implementation of the National 988, and more. Joshua has also drafted and provided input into numerous recommendation reports and mental health policy guidebooks that have all helped to provide insight into key issues from a youth perspective.

Joshua currently sits on the Youth Advisory Councils with the Mood Disorders Society of Canada, National Initiative for Eating Disorders, Advisory Council to Hon. Filomena Tassi PC MP, and is a National Groundbreaker with Frayme and a Community Champion with Unsinkable/Unsinkable Youth. Through these positions, he works to bring his experiences as someone with lived experience of anxiety and suicide attempts while also working to highlight policy changes needed to better access and services. In addition to this, he also sits on the City of Hamilton’s Youth Steering Committee (HamOnt Youth) where he works to engage and advocate for youth within the city to ensure a more open and inclusive city for all.

Laetitia Satam | Council Co-Chair
She/Her, Newfoundland and Labrador

Laetitia’s (she/her) journey for mental health advocacy began when she was just 12 years old. Today she sits on the Board of Directors for Kids Help Phone (KHP)- the largest provider of free e-mental health services in Canada – on top of being appointed to KHP’s Campaign Cabinet, where she works on a $300 million mental health campaign, the largest in Canadian history. She is also co-chair for KHP’s National Youth Council. Laetitia has hosted a national mental health conference that drew keynote luminaries Bob Rae, Canadian Ambassador to the UN, and former NHL goaltender Kelly Hrudey to speak to youth from each province and territory, to equip them to be mental health advocates in their own communities. Laetitia is currently pursuing a BSc in Nutrition and Food Sciences, with a minor in Global Health and a certificate in International Learning at the University of Alberta, where she continues to combine her passions for nutrition, mental health, and public policy together.

Laetitia joined MDSC’s NYAC when she was in highschool and is deeply humbled to currently serve as co-chair. She looks forward to supporting the council and continuing to bring awareness to mental health and mood disorders.

Marie-Pier Mazerolle
She/Her/Elle, Fredericton, New Brunswick, Psychology at Université de Moncton

Marie-Pier is from Fredericton, New Brunswick. She is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in psychology at Université de Moncton. Passionate about wellness and mental health, Marie-Pier volunteers with Kids Help Phone as a Crisis Responder (CR) and as a peer mentor at her university through the “Mentorat Etudiant” program, which helps first-year students navigate the many ups and downs of the post-secondary transition. As she aspires to be a professional in the mental health field one day, Marie-Pier’s main motivation is giving back to the community that helped shape the person that she is today. Being a French Canadian in a language minority environment, she has witnessed first-hand the many challenges encountered when trying to access French resources. Marie-Pier is passionate about making resources accessible for youth all over Canada so that they can get the care that they deserve. She is ecstatic to have the chance to contribute to NYAC’s initiatives to achieve more equitable access to mental health services. She is also keen to discuss the many challenges that our country faces, including those that concern youth in Atlantic Canada.

Shirin Mehrpooya
She/Her, Nova Scotia, Dalhousie University

Shirin Mehrpooya is a third-year Medical Sciences major, minoring in Health Studies at Dalhousie University. Her own lived experience with mental illness and the lived experiences of underrepresented youth in her community fuel her passion for mental health promotion. She is interested in the intersections of equity and mental health. As a result, she launched a province-wide organization called AMPLIFY NS, which seeks to amplify the voices of equity-seeking youth in Nova Scotia. Through roundtable discussions, underrepresented youth in Nova Scotia can safely voice their needs and concerns with local mental healthcare providers, services, and decision-makers. Shirin values the power of lived experiences and believes that they should inform mental health care reforms and policies. Language, financial and cultural barriers continue to perpetuate the double stigma that prevents underrepresented youth from accessing the care they deserve. She hopes to bring forward an intersectional approach to promoting mental health to fuel her work with the NYAC.

Andreea Vasiliu
She/Her, Fredericton, New-Brunswick

Andreea is a psychology major currently studying at the Université de Moncton and will be transferring to the University of New-Brunswick in the fall. As a psych major and hoping to work in healthcare, sharing openly about mental health is very important to her, and she is stoked to work alongside people who think the same.

Christina Lam
British Columbia, Simon Fraser University

Christina is a student at Simon Fraser University, studying in the health sciences and social sciences. Christina has been passionate about mental health for many years because even though it is part of everyone’s life, it is too often dismissed, ignored, or overlooked. Throughout the past few years, Christina has spearheaded several projects in my community to increase knowledge on mental health and wellbeing, particularly in youth and students. Christina aspires to continue this work by joining the Council and becoming part of this group of amazing, passionate individuals. Christina hope that through Our initiatives, we will be able to continue moving toward a society where everybody has safe, equitable access to spaces and resources to care for their own mental wellbeing, have conversations on mental health with the people in their lives, and seek care and support for any struggles they may experience.

Jamie Gibson
Toronto, Ontario

Jamie is from downtown Toronto, where she was born and raised. She is currently a few semesters away from finishing her psychology honours degree, and plans to continue her education in hopes of a job in the mental health and addiction field. Outside of school, she is the manager of a swimming program where she oversees the program, staff, and customer satisfaction. The swimming teachers she oversees are often in high school and this is usually their first job. Jamie tries to teach them to be the best swim teachers they can be while mentoring them about what it means to be in the workforce. Jamie is passionate about harm reduction, preventive programs, and mental health education for youth. De-stigmatizing mental illness and addiction is vital in her eyes because she believes negative societal connotation prevents further social change.

Kaitlyn Monteiro
She/Her, Treaty 6 Territory, Saskatchewan

Kaitlyn was born, raised, and currently resides on Treaty 6 Territory. She is the proud daughter of immigrants from Goa, India and she has spent lots of time connecting with and learning about her cultural roots as a form of self-care and identity reflection. While completing her undergraduate degree, Kaitlyn enjoyed working as a neuro-technician at a provincial non-profit organization, where she learnt about neurofeedback, an innovative therapy modality to help increase one’s quality of life. During this time, Kaitlyn also volunteered with Peer Health, a student-run organization through the University of Saskatchewan focused on enhancing resources and education pertaining to student wellness. Kaitlyn also co-chaired the Drop-In Centre within Peer Health, where university students could come for 1-1 peer counselling during times of stress or hardship. In the last year of her B.A. (Hons) degree in Psychology from the University of Saskatchewan, Kaitlyn completed her honour’s thesis on the self-care behaviours of trauma researchers, which helped shed light on the importance of self-care, especially for those exposed to secondary trauma. After completing her degree, Kaitlyn began working in public health: she is currently working as an outpatient adult addictions counsellor, and prior to this role, Kaitlyn worked in the therapies department at Saskatchewan’s main provincial psychiatric hospital. Thus, Kaitlyn has been fortunate enough to have garnered mental health experience with a diverse population of people. One of Kaitlyn’s guiding principles is that people deserve a safe space where they can feel heard and understood, and she is thankful to be able to practice this value within her work and community efforts.

This year, Kaitlyn will be completing her master’s in educational psychology through the University of Regina, and she looks forward to registering as a psychologist post-graduation. After registering as a psychologist, Kaitlyn hopes to continue working primarily as an adult counsellor, along with offering educational assessments to Northern communities within Saskatchewan. Kaitlyn is also currently a 200-hour yoga teacher in training and looks forward to integrating this knowledge into her future work within mental health.

Jill Stinger
She/Her, Ontario

Jill Stringer (she/her) is a Public Health PhD Student living in Ontario researching post-secondary mental health. She holds a master’s degree in Public Health with experience working and volunteering in the public health sector and with national non-profits. She has been with the Mood Disorders Society of Canada since 2017 and has volunteered with other organizations including the Young Canadians Roundtable on Health, Jack.org, and the Frayme Groundbreakers Network. She is a board member of Mental Health International, mental health advisor to the Canadian Youth Delegate to the WHA and PAHO-DC, and has collaborated on mental health projects with The Canadian Institutes of Health Research, The Centre for Innovation in Campus Mental Health, and the Hamilton Family Health Team.

As a self-proclaimed life-long learner, Jill is driven to advocate for positive health system change that acknowledges and integrates lived expertise and other diverse forms of knowledge. She is most passionate about multidimensional health promotion through an understanding of programs, processes, and policies at the intersection of psychological, physical, and social wellbeing. When she’s not working or studying, Jill enjoys baking, weightlifting, and swimming with friends.

Stacie Smith
She/Her, New Brunswick, University of New Brunswick, Dalhousie University

Stacie is a 2020 Dalhousie Kinesiology graduate from Saint John, New Brunswick. She completed a certificate in Health, Wellness & Recreation at Eastern College in 2014, She was the President of both the Student Association of Health & Human Performance and the Dalhousie Kinesiology Society during her time at Dalhousie. In this capacity, she has worked to draw attention of senior leadership at Dalhousie University regarding the needs of both faculty and students within the Kinesiology program. She is also Executive Director of the Young Canadians Roundtable on Health, the founder of the COVID-19 Student Support Network and a Youth Partner at Frayme. She was the recipient of the PHE Canada Student Leadership Award in 2018-2019 for her leadership role in the School of Health & Human Performance. She will be attending the University of New Brunswick this Fall in the Bachelor of Education program.

Monica Taing
She/Her, Quebec, University of Oxford

Monica Taing is a clinical neuroscience graduate student who believes in making psychiatry and psychology accessible for everyone. To achieve this goal, she volunteers with national organisations such as Kids Help Phone, Frayme, and the Mood Disorders Society of Canada to develop resources and disseminate outreach projects. Monica is keen on taking a holistic approach (clinical, theoretical, experiential) to create healthier mental health communities in Canada.

Yasmin Mehrpooya | High School Subcommittee Co-Chair
She/Her, Nova Scotia

Yasmin (She/Her) is a rising junior in the IB program in Nova Scotia. She loves involving herself in the school community through the student council, tutoring club, Model UN, and Jack.Org. Her intrinsic motivation comes from combining her lived experience with mental illness and that of others to create a sense of community and uplift conversations about mental health. For her post-secondary, she’s hoping to pursue medicine and neuroscience. When she’s not advocating for mental health, you can catch her running and playing the oboe!

Eden
Toronto, Ontario

Eden is located in Toronto and has been with NYAC for almost 5 years. She is the author of several books relating to helping individuals become a better version of themselves. She will be pursuing a career in Social Work and enjoys helping others. In her spare time, she tutors and does a ton of mental health advocacy, works at Sunnybrook Hospital and is an Administrative Assistant at a mental health and addictions clinic in Toronto.

Sandy Luu
She/Her, Ontario, BSc, McMaster University

Sandy is studying at Life Sciences at McMaster University, specializing in sensory motor systems. if there was something she could spend hours and hours on, it would be trying to answer the following question: “What exactly is mental health? Could it be as simple as the absence of mental illness?” But maybe there is no single, concrete answer, after all. Her lived experiences have taught her that our definitions of a “normal life” may be entirely different from someone else’s. and that’s totally okay. The stigmatization of mental health and illness can be a huge barrier for folks wanting to seek support and Sandy would like to work towards changing that – To normalize taking psychiatric medication and making treatment and other support options accessible. To make it so that when someone is having a hard time managing their thoughts and emotions, its not seen as a weakness or a flaw in society, but rather, a sign of internal strength. With that, she is super excited to be working together with the NYAC team and helping to connect youths across Canada to make this vision a reality.

Colt-Harrison
Ontario

Colt-Harrison is a game developer and writer from Ottawa, Ontario. We are thrilled to have Colt-Harrison help with script writing and production for Project Blue.