Tomorrow is Bell Let's Talk Day! Make your voice count as Canada leads the growing worldwide conversation on mental health

Talk, text and join in on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat and take part in Bell Let's Talk Day events nationwide
You can help fight the stigma around mental illness while driving Bell's donations to mental health at no extra cost to you
Learn 5 simple ways to help end stigma at Bell.ca/LetsTalk

MONTRÉAL, Jan. 30, 2018 /CNW Telbec/ - Bell Let's Talk Day is tomorrow, and Canadians and people around the world are invited to talk, text and engage on social media and become part of the growing discussion that is driving awareness and action in mental health.

"It's been amazing to see how people have responded, on social media and in person, to our stories of living with mental illness," said Andi Sharma, who discusses her struggles with addiction and mental illness as part of this year's Bell Let's Talk Day awareness campaign. "I can't wait to add my voice to the conversation tomorrow and I hope all Canadians will join me in making this year's Bell Let's Talk Day another record-setting conversation about mental health."

"Bell Let's Talk Day has become a social movement driven by the commitment of Canadians in every corner of the country to end the stigma around mental illness," said Mary Deacon, Chair of Bell Let's Talk. "I invite everyone to join in tomorrow to help those who struggle with mental illness. Through their growing engagement in the cause, Canadians are really making a difference. I'm very excited to see what we achieve tomorrow."

Mental health affects us all
This year a diverse group of Canadians living with mental illness or supporting those who do have passionately shared their personal stories and experiences with mental illness. They're making clear that mental health affects us all, fostering greater understanding of mental illness, and encouraging all Canadians to join the movement on Bell Let's Talk Day.

Sharing their stories again this year are Bell Let's Talk spokespeople Howie Mandel, Marie-Soleil Dion, Serena Ryder, Michael Landsberg, Michel Mpambara, Stefie Shock, Mary Walsh and Étienne Boulay, all of who share their own lived experience, along with Bell Let's Talk ambassadors Toronto Maple Leafs Head Coach Mike Babcock, pro golfer Andrew Jensen, comedian Kevin Breel, retired CFL player Shea Emry, musician Robb Nash, singer-songwriter Séan McCann and Royal Canadian Navy veteran Bruno Guévremont. This year, we welcome 3 new ambassadors to the team – comedian and actress Jessica Holmes, musician and author Florence K and actress Véronique Bannon.

BELL LET'S TALK EVENTS

JANUARY 30

Michel Mpambara and Myriam Lecousy in Montréal
Michel and Myriam participate in a discussion about mental health at Jeune Chambre de Commerce de Montréal.

Jonathan Thériault in Montréal
Jonathan meets with university students and participates in a conference at the Polytechnique de Montréal.

Andrew Jensen in Halifax
Andrew visits with military personnel at CFB Shearwater.

Robb Nash in Winnipeg
Robb sings the national anthem at the Winnipeg Jets Hockey Talks game in support of mental health.

Séan McCann in Vancouver
Séan visits with youth and presents a Bell Let's Talk Community Fund donation to FamilySmart.

JANUARY 31

Bell Let's Talk Day primetime special
The Social's Marci Ien hosts In Their Own Words, A Bell Let's Talk Day Special. The one-hour primetime event premieres at 7 pm ET/MT on CTV and CTV Two, and features stories from a diverse group of Canadians living with mental health challenges.

Facebook Live event
Following In Their Own Words, Marci Ien, Bell Let's Talk Chair Mary Deacon and Dr. David Goldbloom participate in a live Facebook event.

Jessica Holmes in Toronto
Jessica joins The Social as fifth chair for a special Bell Let's Talk Day episode.

Strike A Chord
A discussion about mental wellness in the entertainment industry will take place at The Lounge at Live Nation in Toronto.

Documentary screening at Hot Docs
In partnership with Hot Docs and Workman Arts, a special free screening of Michael Landsberg's documentary Darkness and Hope: Depression, Sports and Me takes place at the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema.

Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montréal
Business leaders take part in a panel discussion about mental health in the workplace from 11:30 am to 1:30 pm at the Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth.

Bruno Guévremont in Ottawa
Bruno participates in the Canadian Armed Forces panel discussion on mental health at 12:00 noon with Cmdre Chris Sutherland, Col Collen Forestier, MWO Shelley Lamothe and Natasha Khattar, Senior Manager, Total Health Management at National Defence Headquarters, moderated by CTV Ottawa News Anchor Graham Richardson and Captain Nadia Broadbent. The panel discussion will be live-streamed on Twitter, Periscope and Facebook.

Andrew Jensen in Halifax
Andrew visits with military personnel at CFB Halifax, speaks to students at the Nova Scotia Community College Ivany Campus, and drops the puck at the Dalhousie Tigers men's hockey game at the Halifax Forum at 7:00 pm.

Étienne Boulay in Québec City
Étienne hosts the second edition of the Festival d'été de Québec mental health awareness concert at Imperial Bell.

Florence K at Garrison Saint-Jean – Canadian Forces Leadership and Recruit School
Florence K meets with members of the military at the Saint-Jean-Sur-Richelieu military base.

Raptors 905 game in support of Bell Let's Talk
TSN's Michael Landsberg is at the Raptors 905 game at 11:00 am at the Hershey Centre in Mississauga, where more than 5,000 young people will receive Bell Let's Talk/Raptors 905 toques.

Soo Greyhounds support Bell Let's Talk
Fans will receive Bell Let's Talk toques at the game.

Shea Emry and Robb Nash in Winnipeg
Shea and Robb participate in the True North Youth Summit at the Burton Cummings Theatre.

Winnipeg celebrates Bell Let's Talk Day at The Forks
To mark Bell Let's Talk Day, the WINNIPEG sign at The Forks National Historic Site goes blue all day.

Bell Let's Talk Day at Studio Bell in Calgary
A full day of programming at the National Music Centre includes a mental health exhibition featuring regional community partners, specialty tours, music and presentations.

Séan McCann in Vancouver
Séan visits with City of Vancouver first responders.

BC Place Stadium lights up
In partnership with Vancouver Whitecaps FC, BC Place Stadium lights up in blue to support Bell Let's Talk and mental health.

University sport games in support of Bell Let's Talk
130 universities and colleges around the country host 200 events and varsity games to encourage the campus mental health conversation.

Get engaged all day long tomorrow
Bell will donate 5 cents to Canadian mental health programs for each of these interactions at no extra cost to participants:

Text and talk: Every text message, mobile and long distance call made by Bell Canada, Bell Aliant and Bell MTS customers
Twitter: Every tweet using #BellLetsTalk which includes a new Bell Let's Talk emoji and Bell Let's Talk Day video view
Facebook: Every view of the Bell Let's Talk Day video at Facebook.com/BellLetsTalk and use of the Bell Let's Talk frame
Instagram: Every Bell Let's Talk Day video view
Snapchat: Every use of the Bell Let's Talk filter and video view

Bell Let's Talk Day 2017 set all new records with 131,705,010 total messages, growing Bell's funding for Canadian mental health by $6,585,250.50. #BellLetsTalk was Canada's top hashtag in 2017, and is now the most used Twitter hashtag ever in Canada.

With approximately 729,065,654 interactions by Canadians over the last 7 Bell Let's Talk Days, Bell's total commitment to mental health, including an original $50-million anchor donation in 2010, has risen to $86,504,429.05. Bell expects its donation commitment to reach at least $100 million in 2020.

The 5 simple ways to help end the stigma around mental illness
Together, we can all help end the stigma around mental illness with the 5 simple ways developed by Dr. Heather Stuart, the Bell Mental Health and Anti-Stigma Research Chair at Queen's University:

Language matters – pay attention to the words you use about mental illness
Educate yourself – learn, know and talk more, understand the signs
Be kind – small acts of kindness speak a lot
Listen and ask – sometimes it's best to just listen
Talk about it – start a dialogue, break the silence

To learn more, please visit Bell.ca/LetsTalk.

Media inquiries:

Jacqueline Michelis
613-785-1427
jacqueline.michelis@bell.ca
@Bell_News

SOURCE Bell Canada