Manitoba has become the first province in Canada to declare a Men's Mental Health Awareness Week. And Manitobans can thank Dawson Trail PC MLA Bob Lagasse for making this happen.
In November of 2022, Lagasse went public with his mental health struggles. Lagasse addressed the Manitoba Legislature, sharing what he had been battling in recent months. The MLA said that he came to the realization that his mental health was not where it needed to be, noting he had been getting very hyper-focused on thoughts of self-harm.
This led to Lagasse introducing legislation to have the week before Father's Day declared Men's Mental Health Awareness Week. The bill recently received third and final reading and then Thursday at 7:44 pm, it was given royal assent.
"I'm super excited," says Lagasse. "This is a conversation that's not going to end, it's going to carry on, long after I'm gone."
The Dawson Trail MLA says what is so important about this bill is that it means they have opened the conversation. He notes after going public with his own struggles, the conversation took on a life of its own. Lagasse says we are at a point where men's mental health is being recognized officially in Manitoba and this should reduce the stigma.
Lagasse is quick to point out that this is also an important topic for women, however, the reason why he chose to highlight men is because men tend to hold everything in. And though there is no way of measuring the effectiveness of this bill, Lagasse says if it is providing a reason to talk about mental health, it is already making a difference.
Lagasse says when he first shared his story, it was never intended to do anything. He says it came at a point in his life where he was struggling hard and realized that being in the Legislative Assembly was not helping because of its toxic nature.
"My intent was more to make people aware that there's struggles," he shares. "And then I started looking for those resources and just realizing there were none."
Bill 217 states that men account for nearly 75 per cent of suicides in Canada and that suicide is the second leading cause of death among men under the age of 50.
"What does a man do if he can't just go and find the resources to talk to (a) councillor, if he can't afford to, or those resources aren't there?" questions Lagasse. "This is now opening the door to say 'hey, there's a lot of men out there suffering.'"
Lagasse says this bill has helped him in his healing journey and he is excited that it is also helping others to feel more free to share their stories.
Lagasse says he is hopeful that the provincial government will throw some additional resources towards promoting Men's Mental Health Awareness Week. He notes the week will be an opportunity to highlight the importance of talking. Lagasse says he would love to see families sit down and talk openly about their struggles.
It has now been almost two years since Lagasse first opened up in the Manitoba Legislature about his mental health struggles. Yet, he says unfortunately there has been no change to the toxic environment there.
"Even yesterday, I reminded everyone to be kind to one another," says Lagasse. "We've all been elected to be leaders in our communities and we really should be leading by example."
Lagasse says he wishes he could say that the environment has changed, but really it has not, noting the comments being thrown across the room at each other are very, very toxic.
Having said that, Lagasse notes that Bill 217 has received support from all parties. He says amazing stories have come out, including from those who attended the community engagement process.
"Mental health is not a partisan issue, it doesn't care which way you vote, it's out there, it's prevalent," says Lagasse. "The presenters that came when it was at committee, I've got to thank them again for coming and sharing their stories because it just truly shows that it doesn't care who you are but all of us are going to struggle at some point."