10:55 AM - 11:00 AM
S9.4 - Facilitator
11:00 AM - 11:10 AM
47163 - From Silence to Systems Change: The Power of Lived Experience in Digital Mental Health Leadership and Storytelling
Mr. Asante Haughton, Manager, Storytelling, Unsinkable
We often speak about impact in numbers—but in mental health, impact often begins with a single story.
My name is Hailey Hechtman, and I am the Executive Director of Unsinkable, a Canadian charity founded by Olympian and mental health advocate Silken Laumann. For the past six years, Unsinkable has worked at the intersection of digital innovation and lived experience, using storytelling to connect individuals to mental health resources, reduce stigma, and inspire help-seeking. Through story-based campaigns, workplace panels, community events, and strategic partnerships, we’ve reached hundreds of thousands of people across Canada.
But for me, the story is personal. I’ve spent my entire career working in the mental health and nonprofit space—while privately battling an eating disorder for over a decade. Like many helping professionals, I poured myself into supporting others, compartmentalizing my own struggles until I reached a breaking point. What shifted everything? Hearing one person’s story—a podcast where a woman shared experiences so similar to mine that I was moved to tears. That moment became a catalyst for healing, and eventually, the work I now lead.
In this presentation, I will share insights from both my personal journey and Unsinkable’s national programming to show how storytelling can act as a tool for transformation across three levels:
For the Individual:
Storytelling offers a vehicle for reflection, self-understanding, and empowerment. Through our Unsinkable Stories, Community Champions, and Unsinkable Youth programs, we’ve seen firsthand how individuals who share their stories report increased resilience, reduced self-stigma, and a greater sense of connection.
For the Audience:
Stories humanize mental health challenges, inspire empathy, and drive behavior change. Campaigns like Fragments: Stories That Heal—which featured billboards across Toronto, podcast and radio ads, and national social media storytelling—brought real, unfiltered voices into the public conversation. Our collaborations with Kids Help Phone, The 44 North, and BDC help extend the reach of these stories into spaces where stigma is still a barrier.
For Systems Change:
Personal narratives are increasingly being used as tools for policy feedback, clinical insight, and public education. At Unsinkable, we co-create spaces where people with lived experience are not just heard, but valued as knowledge-holders—whether on stage, online, or in boardrooms. Our storytelling frameworks are trauma-informed, participant-driven, and designed with care to ensure ethical amplification without exploitation.
This session will also highlight our emphasis on “process over publication”—ensuring we create intentional, respectful storytelling experiences that prioritize the storyteller’s wellbeing and build trust with our audiences. In a world oversaturated with content, we believe in crafting stories that matter—ones that don’t just fill a feed, but foster genuine connection and action.
As digital mental health continues to evolve, we must remember: data tells us what’s happening, but stories tell us why it matters. When lived experience is centred—not as a sidebar, but as a strategic pillar—we can shift not only systems, but culture.
11:10 AM - 11:20 AM
46637 - Unfinished: Finding Order in Disorder
An autoethnographic documentary film created as a collaboration between mother and daughter will be shared, which encapsulates a young woman’s mental health journey through the lens of her mother. Over a series of hospitalizations, the mother’s inquiry to unpack the conundrum of her daughter’s mental health condition unfolds. At its core, it is a critical self-reflection on the caregiver and family’s role in their loved one’s mental health. Although the film is from the caregiver’s point of view, the film’s creative process was an intimate inquiry led by the mother and her daughter, a process born out of unconditional love, non-judgment and trust. The viewing experience may help participants make meaning of their own concerns, conflicts, and barriers and find some answers to their unique situations, opening up the space to think more deeply about their journey of recovery – of oneself, loved ones and/or caregiving roles. Interactive engagement with the material will provide a palpable opportunity to discuss coping skills, offering helpful markers for supporting youth with their mental health recovery. As a family, we constantly critique the circumstances of our loved one’s diagnosis. The film may provide some familiar situations and allow participants to review their unique struggles with recovery through creative catharsis. Our presentation provides a unique perspective on lived experience, resonating with the conference's core objectives of fostering collaboration and connections through digital creative approaches. Our personal story introduces innovative methods on interventions and recovery strategies, emphasizing interdisciplinary collaboration for diverse populations. We aim to explore clinical interventions and collaborative approaches that promote equitable, high-quality care and demonstrate enhanced outcomes. Ultimately, our presentation aims to inspire and innovate family and caregiver support services, potentially generating novel approaches in this field and motivating initiatives to further build capacity in youth and family engagement, partnership and co-design. Participants will be invited to respond to an online survey to share their feelings and feedback. Discussion prompts will catalyze meaningful self-reflections in an inclusive, diverse, and safe environment. Ishaa will cite pertinent quotes from her book, ‘Finding Order in Disorder’: Collaborative Care Model Approach: “Those closest to you will always show you the mirror and tell you the truth of how you are coping.” Self-Awareness: “I realize that however far one attempts to flee, there is no place to escape from your own mind and thoughts. Wherever you go, your brain goes with you, your mind accompanies you.” Ableism: “Most labels, especially in mental health, arise because of some notion of abnormality which is defined by society to be wrong or not in sync with ‘perfection’.” Journaling (or Writing) as a means of Healing and Catharsis: “Despite everything, I doodled and wrote several poems…despite the loss of my sense of self, there was still some kind of order, some striving for purpose and meaning, even when one is in that episodic state, light can shine through the darkness.”
11:20 AM - 11:30 AM
A077 - The Revolving Door of Broken Glass: Living within a Fragmented Mental Health System
11:30 AM - 11:40 AM
46788 - Road to Recovery in Digital Age: Healing Through Agency, On-Line Learning & Becoming Trauma-Informed
During a 1 year absence from work, I shifted my healing process to a focus on learning, and particularly about the steps from being "traumatized" to trauma informed. So, I embarked on a wonderful adventure with the help of online resources at my fingertips. The digital age has made my healing journey more accessible to my needs. Learning from experts about Trauma (c-PTSD) has helped tremendously in my healing. This could not have been accomplished without access to online resources such as online courses, webinar, etc. (as well as the support from a therapist) and attendance at both online and in-person conferences. I want to share my exciting journey with others. I will present the learning roadmap I created which illustrates the various stops along my long and winding road of 1 year. It all began with Gabor Mate on Youtube clearly explaining what Trauma is. The compassion that came through from him, online motivated me to further explore and to participate in an actual online session with him. I also knew that I wanted to meet him in person. This then led me to attend the in person Healing Trauma Conference in Atlantic Canada (PEI) as well as PESI's Innovations in Psychotherapy conference (Los Angeles) where I met and spoke with Gabor Mate as well as Bessel van der Kolk. Via online courses through PESI, I registered and watched numerous experts present on polyvagal theory and PTSD, such as Stephen Porges, Deb Dana, Arielle Schwartz; on SE with Peter Levine and R Schwartz regarding IFS. EMDR with a therapist was also an important part of my journey. A profoundly impactful leg of my online journey was with the Pocket Project (Tomas Hubl) and their 6 month self-study course on Trauma-Informed Leadership and ongoing online practise group sessions. The key message from the Pocket Project is that we all need to become trauma-informed and that we must heal ourselves first. I also participated in various online conferences related to Trauma, Mindfulness, etc. This was a wonderful year of learning and healing for me. This online learning was not a solitary journey as I was also seeing my therapist on a regular basis and was able to share my learning with him. We established trust and a collaborative process of mutual sharing. It is important to access credible sources online and to have a therapist as well as the independent online learning. During my presentation I will share my roadmap, resources (sources), insights, inspirations, art, metaphors. Welcome to the digital age - it is wonderful and tremendously beneficial for those who are inclined to journey into understanding themselves. It may not be a journey for all, but it was a very exciting and illuminating one for me and I want to share these experiences so that therapists may see the benefit in recommending online learning as part of their clients' healing journeys to attaining post-traumatic growth. Self-agency is essential. This is a visual presentation of my journey accompanied by a soundtrack (music snips) as every journey needs music for the souls of the travelers. I hope you will join me as present the slideshow of my travels.
11:40 AM - 11:50 AM
A096 - Access Granted: The iPhone's Role in Advancing Equity and Inclusion in a Vision-Centric World
11:50 AM - 12:20 PM
47058 - PANEL: How Are We Doing? Results from the First Meta-Analysis of Universal Digital Mental Health Interventions for Children and Youth: A Partnership Between DIVERT Mental Health and Strong Minds Strong Kids - Psychology Canada
Dr. Kaitlin Di Pierdomenico, Postdoctoral Visitor, York University
Anne Lovegrove, President and Executive Director, Strong Minds Strong Kids, Psychology
Mental health concerns among children and youth are on the rise, while traditional systems continue to struggle to meet demand. Digital tools are often viewed as scalable solutions, but how well do they work, and who is actually being reached? Despite growing investment in digital mental health tools, there remains no clear, consolidated understanding of what works, what doesn't, and where the evidence is lacking. Without this knowledge, we risk scaling solutions that fail to deliver equitable, lasting impact, especially for populations too often left out of the conversation.
We conducted the first meta-analysis on universal (Tier 1) digital mental health interventions (DMHIs) for children and youth. This project emerged from a national partnership between DIVERT Mental Health and Strong Minds Strong Kids - Psychology Canada. Together, we bring academic research and community expertise into conversation to reimagine the future of inclusive, accessible digital mental health care.
In this session, we will share findings on:
• Which formats (fully virtual or hybrid) are most effective
• The psychological outcomes most impacted (emotional, behavioural, social, cognitive)
• Whether benefits are sustained over time
• Key gaps in the evidence, including the underrepresentation of equity-seeking populations
Join us as we reflect on what the research tells us, where the field needs to go next, and how we can work together to implement digital mental health tools that meet the diverse needs of all children and youth on the planet.