Matthew Dickson

Founder of Mind Aid, the world's first website with all the groups helping people with mental illness in developing countries on one site; first person with schizophrenia to bicycle across Canada

I had an average life growing up in a small town in Canada, and then out of nowhere I decided to bicycle across Canada in the middle of university.

I completed the trip in 1992, but two years later I developed schizophrenia. My dreams were shattered and my only goal was to save my life and get my health back.

Once I started recovery, I noticed a small improvement in my mental health every single week and after about 3 decades I successfully recovered.

I bicycled across Canada again in 2023, becoming the first person with the disease to do so!

I want to tell people that the disease is not a death sentence and some people do recover from it. Who knows? Maybe you will recover from it!

Always stay hopeful! You never know what tomorrow may bring!

I also want to tell people they are capable of so much more than they think, and to not wait to be a super-confident person before you take action on your goals.

By taking small actions over time, the actions will give you small boosts of confidence.

Actions give you confidence! Don't wait for the confidence before you take action!

Like building a brick wall, each action, each brick, will give you confidence that will add up over time. Who knows what you may be able to accomplish in the future!

In 2018 I made the world's first website with all the groups helping people with mental illness in developing countries on one site, www.MindAid.ca.

This is a cause most people don't think about, let alone know where to go to donate.

But after mental health started being talked about during the 2020 pandemic, if there was ever a time this cause could take off, it is now!

I know many people would donate to this cause, and I encourage people to make it and Mind Aid mainstream conversation.

Listeners also come away from my talks with a lot of tools to improve their own mental health. I've learned some pretty effective tips that I am so excited to share with others as they have helped me so much!

I would love to share them with your audience and help give them hope!

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