Good evening. I know it’s late where you are, and it’s a Saturday night and there are many important things you’d like to be doing. You’ve ordered a pizza, taken the phone off the hook and you’re ready to just watch Neflix and chill for the night.

Why are you looking at me funnily like that? Stop it, stop playing with the cat and just listen.

Seriously. Why are you looking at me like that? Trust me, this is worth your time.

I want to talk to you about something that is very important to me, something very close to my heart and that’s mental health. Some of my friends may be aware that I’m taking medication for a mental health issue, one that’s treatable thankfully but it’s also one that took me a lot of strength to face. It has been a long 9 months for me, but I know I’ll get there with the support I’ve been given.

A huge part of my progress was the strength loaned to me by loved ones and close friends. But not everyone is so lucky, not everyone has that support network.

There are people out there trying to do a rather wonderful, selfless thing tonight by holding a 24 hour gaming marathon in the offices of Complex Games. Members of the gaming website Critical Hit in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada are looking to help make a difference to mental health support in their community.

Here’s some background for you on why you should reach out, watch the stream and donate a few bucks if you can spare it.

• Did you know that one in every five Canadians are likely to suffer a diagnosable mental illness in 2015?
• One in five might not sound like a LOT, but that’s 20% of the Canadian population — almost 9 million people. 9 million!
• Where the team are based in Winnipeg, it’s a few hundred people shy of 180,000 that are affected by mental issues. That’s a few football stadiums full, with still some people to spare.

Enough from me, you can follow along in the stream above and follow them on Twitter at @CritHitsShow, and you can make a donation at the following link: DONATE.

Bonus: For every confirmed donation I’ll record an audio message for your voicemail using my very powerful, Northern Irish accent. I’ve heard people are very fond of it.

Some might recall an earlier post of mine where I admitted that I needed help. Well I certainly sought help and for a few months I attended a weekly meeting. During these sometimes short, sometimes long – but always fifty minutes in length – meetings I’d work through my feelings. I’d try and understand why I felt the way I did, a way that I couldn’t quite define until now.

I felt, feel, am feeling alone. Continue reading →

I’m not healthy. That might sound alarmist but sometimes you need to admit the hard truth before you can fix yourself. Continue reading →