Normalizing Mental Health

Yardi Canada + Bell Let’s Talk

By Erica Rascón on Feb 8, 2021 in Global

Did you know that 38% of Canadians say their mental health has declined due to COVID-19? The data, reported by the Canadian Mental Health Association, highlights the importance of mental health resources.

Bell Let’s Talk encourages conversation and awareness around mental health. Its campaigns, such as Bell Let’s Talk Day, aim to decrease the stigma around mental health while raising funds for supportive initiatives.

Your voice and experiences are valuable to your community

Bell Let’s Talk and similar initiatives are important for community wellness. They create safe spaces where individuals can give and receive support and share resources. By sharing our experiences and providing a compassionate listening ear, we can promote communities that are healthier inside and out.

Safe spaces are incredibly important: 65% of the 3,000 survey participants reported adverse mental health impacts related to COVID-19 in May, yet only 2% reported accessing online mental health resources such as apps and websites not involving direct contact with a mental health care provider.

Supportive spaces can be a catalyst to or supplement to speaking with a clinician. Online conversations do not replace the need for guidance from a health care professional.

By initiating conversations on mental wellness, you can make a difference. In a recent survey conducted by Nielsen Consumer Insights, 83% of Canadians now say they are comfortable speaking with others about mental health, compared to only 42% in 2012.

Stay involved with Bell Let’s Talk

On January 28, Bell Let’s Talk Day, Bell donated five cents to Canadian mental health programs for every applicable text, call, social media post or TikTok video using #BellLetsTalk. A donation was also made for every view of the Bell Let’s Talk Day video, and every use of the Bell Let’s Talk Facebook frame or Snapchat filter.

Within 24 hours, Canadians and participants worldwide set new records for engagement with mental health conversations. Participants shared 159,173,435 messages and raised $7,958,671.75! Yardi employees were proud supporters of the event. Since its first fundraiser in 2010, Bell has raised over $121 million to support mental health organizations throughout Canada.

Support for Yardi Canada employees

Yardi was proud to join the 11^th annual Bell Let’s Talk Day to promote social awareness and proactive measures regarding mental health.

“It was an honour to support Bell Let’s Talk Day. At Yardi, we will continue to do our part to support mental health awareness and programming. Both are so very important, and we must keep these conversations going year round,” says Marla Mayes, human resources director, Yardi Canada.

You can help keep the conversations going throughout the year. Below are five simple ways to help end stigma surrounding mental health as recommended by Dr. Heather Stuart, the Bell Canada Mental Health and Anti-stigma research chair at Queen’s University:

1. Language matters: notice the words that you use when you refer to your mental health and the mental health of others.
2. Educate yourself: take time to learn the facts and myths regarding mental health.
3. Be kind: let others know that you are there for them with simple acts of kindness.
4. Listen and ask: listen to hear rather than to respond, and ask how you can help.
5. Talk about it: mental illness touches many people personally or through family and friends. Recovery is possible, and it often begins by just talking about it.