Content Warning: This episode of Outlook On Radio Western contains discussions of major depression and talk of suicide. We at Outlook believe these things need to be talked about more, but wish to remain sensitive to possible triggers others may have.

It’s where the ocean meets the sand, where a total lack of control (like during a pandemic) can lead to a moment of clarity and the daily (or overnight) reminders of what truly matters.

This week on Outlook we speak with singer/song writer/musician/author Heather Hutchison about her book “Holding On By Letting Go: A Memoir”.

The journey of one’s blindness is different for everyone, with such varied factors, but this is a story of where one person’s feelings about themselves as being blind, being different than other people, where that intersects with their experiences with anxiety, depression, and suicide.

In the pages of this poignant memoir on mental illness, disability, and mental health and finding one’s purpose, Hutchison shares on her early experiences trying to fit in, in her discovery of her gifts and outlets through music and its associated communities, and following her on her travels to Peru for one year and back to Canada again.

From a hurtful experience on a playground slide at age five to the insensitive comment of an airport official which reminded her why she’d left Canada to begin with. On seeing red, on tipping points and moments of clarity, “Holding On By Letting Go” is an honest revealing look into the work required for a life well lived. With Heather, we talk bullying, the only one guide dog club, and on removing the stigma of a psych ward by sharing her diary of the time she spent in one in the middle of a pandemic.

Find links to Heather’s book, music, and more on her website:

https://heather-hutchison.com