Calen Pick, his mother Jessie Close, and his aunt, Glenn Close, are working to alter public perception of mental illness through their stigma-fighting campaign Bring Change 2 Mind
Calen Pick’s famous aunt, Glenn Close, was a keynote speaker last spring at the Mental Health Commission of Canada’s conference about stigma and the way we see mental illness. Together with her sister, Jessie Close, and her nephew, Calen Pick, the three family members helped to put a family face on the experience of living with–and dealing with–mental illness among family members.
Despite her high profile, Glenn Close told The Globe and Mail: “I take exception to the idea that I am not an everyday person. The pain that a family goes through – the pain that an individual goes through – is the same no matter who you are. From a celebrity standpoint – and I really hate that word – I believe you have to have an authentic connection to this issue. Who cares what a celebrity thinks? I hope that people will care what I think because I am a member of a family who has struggled with mental illness.”
Glenn Close’s sister Jessie Close, who lives with bipolar disorder, as well as her nephew Calen Pick, who has schizo-affective disorder, also spoke at the opening of the Ottawa conference–and all three family members attended plenaries and workshops throughout the international event.
The Close family members have formed a campaign called Bring Change 2 Mind, which is designed to eradicate the stigma and discrimination surrounding mental illness.
While at the Ottawa conference, Calen Pick described his experience with schizo-affective disorder as “trying to sift through the sifting sands of my mind” and said that “the drop into psychosis is a quick event,” while “the climb out is slower and more technical.”
Calen told Natonal Public Radio that it was a “very slow” process to learn to deal with himself and others. “It’s a hard road to hoe [but] I think if there’s a little bit of change in perception toward those with mental illness, education is very important…recovery is a possibility,” he said.
We speak with Calen Pick about his experiences, his education and advocacy work, and his art.
Images: TOP: Actress Glenn Close (centre) poses for a photograph with her sister Jessie Close and nephew Calen Pick at an international conference on eliminating mental health stigma in Ottawa. (Dave Chan for the Globe and Mail); BOTTOM: Calen Pick, a nephew of actor Glenn Close, lives with schizo-affective disorder. (Jessie Close).
RELATED | Calen Pick’s website | BringChange2Mind | Video: Calen Pick and Annie Starke | The Globe and Mail: Glenn Close: Battling the stigma of mental illness (June 6, 2012) | Bipolar Magazine: Calen Pick gets personal (Summer 2010) | National Public Radio: Mental Illness Is Up Close In One Actor’s Family (June 4, 2012) |
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Glenn Close, Jessie Close and Calen Pick speak at the opening of the Mental Health Commission of Canada’s conference on mental illness and stigma, on Monday June 4, 2012.
