SOURIS -- Six years after losing their son to suicide, a couple is shining the light on mood disorders in the hope of erasing the stigma that surrounds them.
They chose to do that by organizing a walk/run to show support for those who live with mood disorders such as depression and bipolar disorder -- to show them it's OK to talk about their conditions and seek help.
"We can come together," said organizer Cathy Williams during Saturday's event. "As a community, we can support each other but we can also show, as we're walking through the town of Souris, it's OK we're supporting mental health issues."
Among those who took part were a number of youth who quickly completed the five-kilometre course, including 12-year-old Aisha Ross and her young friends, Catherine Punay and Angela Kohut.
Ross said a relative had depression a number of years ago, but is now doing well.
"I wanted to help her, in a way, and I guess help other people, too," Ross said. "It made me feel good -- and exhausted."
A total of 82 people, including volunteers, participated in the event, which raised $4,928 on Saturday and $1,700 from sponsors.
Cathy and her husband Dave organized the Souris walk, which was held on the sixth anniversary of the death of their 30-year-old son who had struggled with depression. They were helped in organizing the event by Cathy's sister, Barb Malzensky.
"I felt that by doing this it was kind of a celebration of my son's life," Cathy said. "I want other people who have had those similar experiences to come and feel that we're doing something."
The Williams asked that their son's name not be printed out of respect for their extended family.
The Souris event was a satellite walk of the Andrew Dunn Walk/Run, which was started in Oakbank by Dunn's mother after her son took his own life.
In Oakbank, it was the ninth year for the event, and last year, an estimated 1,000 people took part there.
This year's Souris event marked the first time that a satellite walk/run has been held outside Oakbank.
It was organized after the Williams attended the Oakbank walks/runs in previous years.
"It was very uplifting," Cathy said of the Oakbank visits. "To see all these people that had been touched in some way by mental health issues, or someone they knew ... We decided then, when we were there, that we wanted to try to have that here."
Stigma prevents those with mood disorders and mental illness from seeking the help they need, says Mood Disorders Association of Manitoba's Westman outreach manager, Connie Ricker.
"That is the No. 1 thing," Ricker said. "It's very, very difficult for people to disclose that they have a mood disorder, especially in smaller communities."
The good news is that there is help.
"Westman has such a huge mental health community," Ricker said. "The resources are phenomenal."
The association hosts support meetings in Brandon for those with a variety of mood disorders, for example, and it connects them with other services they may need.
Ricker said that she receives at least 15 calls per day from people seeking help for mood disorders. The majority are from rural areas.
Besides showing support for those with disorders, the Souris walk and run raised money to be used to provide more rural mental health services in Westman.
Williams has suggested a high school scholarship for a student entering the mental health field, and a good citizenship award.
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LOCAL SUPPORTS
Here are some of the local supports available for those who have mood disorders, who are struggling with stress or contemplating suicide:
* Help can be sought by attending the 7th Street Access Centre.
* Westman Crisis Services is on-hand by dialing 1-888-379-7699. The program runs a Crisis Stabilization Unit with eight beds, and a Mobile Crisis Unit.
* Support groups and other services can be accessed through the Mood Disorders Association of Manitoba at 204-725-1232.
* For anyone who is suicidal, assistance is available through the Manitoba Suicide Line at 1-877-435-7170.
* The number for Manitoba Farm and Rural Support Services is 1-866-367-3276. Online counselling with live webchat is available online at supportline.ca and via email/text at help@ruralsupport.ca.
* The Calm in the Storm app for stress management is also available to download for free.
* The Brandon and Area Suicide Bereavement Support Group can be contacted at 204-571-4183.
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