I drove down Queen West yesterday and saw a pretty dramatic scene. After decades of use, the main building at CAMH is coming down. I would spy it from time to time as a kid driving by with my parents, and couldn’t help but wonder what was going on inside. It was 999 Queen Street back then, and we all spoke of it with fear and derision. If there was a group you could disparage as a kid, it was people with mental illness. Suggesting someone would be taken to 999 Queen was not punishment worthy. 
CAMH is looking to change the face of Mental Illness through a dramatic reconstruction of the grounds – making the buildings integrate with the community. If the the first stage was any indication, the facility will resemble a group of condominiums more than a health facility. The effort is more than worthy of admiration. The more we understand mental illness, the more we are able to be compassionate towards those who suffer in its grasp.
But as I listen to my kids’ banter I realize that there’s more we need to do to make sure that the next generation doesn’t grow up as prejudiced as ours. The “S” word is a big no-no (that would be “stupid” by the way), but kids will call each other “retarded” and “crazy” all the time. Its a small thing, and I occasionally correct it when I hear it, but watching the building on Queen getting torn down, I was struck by how easy it is to let those comments go, and how entrenched those ideas can become.
It struck me that the demolition on Queen is a big opportunity to talk to our kids about mental illness, and to lay the groundwork so that they might more easily come to a place where they can be compassionate for those suffering from it, and also to be less ashamed and more open about talking about it if they themselves are ensnared by it.
There are a ton of resources online for talking to kids about mental illness, such as this one from the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. As CAMH makes its bold statement to redefine mental health, we can help by carrying that message to our children.
CAMH is also on Facebook.
