CMHA is sending you a special invitation to participate in the Mental Health For All Conference, September 29 & 30 in Toronto.
Do you experience mental health issues? Are you an ally of people with lived experience? Please read on…
People with Lived Experience of mental health issues. We might call ourselves consumers of mental health services. Or service users. Or peers. Or survivors. We might call ourselves PWLE. But whatever we call ourselves, we are coming together like never before. We are having a transformative effect on the delivery of our own services and resources. As the disability movement has long declared: “nothing about us without us”.
Too often we are excluded. Sometimes that’s because we have financial barriers that prevent us from fully participating in events and conferences that have significant fees.
This fall, PWLE are not only being invited to participate in the CMHA’s Mental Health for All Conference – they are being truly included. Historically, the voices of the very people who use mental health services have gone unheard. They have been silenced. This has changed, and CMHA has been a big part of driving that shift. CMHA has a strong and proud history of including the perspectives and the participation of persons with lived experience. CMHA is reinforcing that commitment on many fronts, including through the exciting work of National Council of Persons with Lived Experience (NCPLE) and by offering a PWLE delegate fee at our National Mental Health For All conference, September 29 & 30 in Toronto. Delegates with lived experience of mental health issues, for whom the full delegate fee is a financial barrier, are encouraged to select the reduced rate – more than 60% off – for the two-day conference. The $250 rate for two days is designed to significantly reduce barriers to participation for PWLE who would otherwise be unable to attend.
The conference is offering a stimulating program of particular interest to people who have mental health issues, and who use mental health services. Featuring workshops, panels, and a PWLE caucus with a “lived experience” focus, the MH4A conference offers a unique opportunity for PWLE to join in the national conversation about Mental Health, Mental Illness and Addiction with thought leaders, family members, researchers, funders, service providers and front-line workers.