Sophie Grégoire Trudeau has three children, including two teenagers. Her husband is being threatened more and more frequently, and stones were even thrown at the prime minister in the last election campaign. His family had to temporarily relocate during the height of the occupation of downtown Ottawa last year. When she was younger, she suffered from eating disorders and anxiety. Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, who takes care of her mental health, knows something about it.

The Prime Minister’s wife has made it one of her biggest concerns. She talks about it on all platforms, at every opportunity. Conversations with various public figures on this topic are regularly held on his Instagram page.

“When I decided to tell my story 20 years ago, it changed my life. And it changes her every time I tell a part of my story,” said Sophie Grégoire Trudeau in an interview The duty this week to mark National Mental Health Week, which ends this Sunday. “It is from this vulnerability that I have learned the most in my entire life. »

The theme of this year’s Mental Health Awareness Week – “My Story” – was therefore a perfect fit for the speaker. For speaking publicly about her own mental health 20 years ago, Sophie Grégoire Trudeau claims she “really started a real healing journey.”

A trip that even led her to writing a book on the subject, due to be published next year, she reveals to the Duty a few weeks before the release date is officially announced. There, of course, she tells her story. But she’s also speaking to experts to try to understand why brains, which are all identical at a neurological level, still differ from person to person. “You can compare the brain to a hard drive. And then there’s the programming of that brain that comes from our life experiences,” she explains.

“If we start raising awareness at a young age and educating people about why they act and react their own way to better understand their emotions, we would have different individuals on the planet and we would have different leaders,” , says Sophie Grégoire Trudeau. “And I think we as humans would have a very good chance of saving ourselves and the planet at the same time. »

The mother of the family also does this educational and educational work with her three children. “All five of us are very, very closely connected. We keep the conversation open, deep, difficult. But I think there’s no other way to keep the authenticity in the middle. With all the ups and downs to experience, like everyone in their own family. »

protect health for all

The politician’s wife is reluctant to confide in herself the weight that the social climate has weighed on her in recent years. “I have great sensitivity and compassion for families, who are generally in the public eye. I have a better understanding of the many opportunities, but also… unique challenges,” she says, making sure to weigh her words as she also acknowledges that she leads a privileged life.

But the political landscape has changed, she notes. “On social media, whether it’s young people, public figures, some MPs I know, or women who are constantly being bullied, it’s absolutely serious. She evokes the polarization of society, the rapid development of artificial intelligence. And insists we must come together and show empathy to face it.

Despite everything, she is optimistic about the future. “In 20 years I have seen how the discourse has evolved. Back then, hardly anyone spoke publicly about eating disorders or other mental health problems. “The good news is that the level of awareness and knowledge has increased. There’s still stigma, but efforts are being redoubled to try to crumble it, to try to crumble it a little. »

I have great sensitivity and compassion for families, who are generally in the public eye. I better understand the many possibilities, but also of… unique challenges.

She also lives this hope as a mother. “Of course I have concerns. I have three children. But when you lose faith in life, in the goodness of people, I think it gets dark. And I will always refuse to give him more space than he deserves. »

Sophie Grégoire Trudeau will continue to support this cause that is so dear to her heart. Because although one in five people in Canada has been diagnosed with a mental disorder, mental health is everyone’s business. “You, me, everyone is sane. It affects us all. It’s not a thing, it’s a reality we carry within us,” she insists from behind her computer’s camera while regularly settling down to preach her message daily.

To see in the video