It's the late 70s and Margaret Trudeau is on her way to New York to kick start a career in photography, when she gets a call from a friend. The Rolling Stones are playing a private concert in Toronto and they want to meet her.
She recalls being filled with euphoria and excitement. Her emotions are through the roof. Trudeau is having a manic episode (she just doesn't know it yet), one she should regret, she confesses to an audience in Chatham on Friday night. "I don't," she says.
Trudeau, both the mother and former wife of a prime minister, didn't hold back, as she pulled back the covers of her battle with bipolar disorder during a talk at the Capitol Theatre. Her mental illness manifested itself for years, but her diagnosis came late in life.
Margaret Trudeau embraces an attendee after her talk at Chatham's Capitol Theatre on February 24, 2017.
Trudeau now lends her voice to speaking engagements across the country, to raise awareness about eliminating the stigma of mental illness. The evening was a fundraiser for Family Service Kent.
"Perhaps the reason I had to go through all of this, and how I was even picked by Pierre Trudeau, I think I was meant to be doing this. To have gone through all this horror of untreated mental illness ... so that I have this story to tell," Trudeau said in an interview after her talk. "I've been doing it for ten years so I can't say that it's cathartic anymore. But what it does give me is purpose."
Ultimately, Trudeau wants to break the silence. Mental illness can't be cured by just taking a pill, she told the crowd - you need to want help. But she admits more support is needed in smaller places like Chatham-Kent, where the infrastructure just isn't as extensive as larger cities.
"There's always a Canadian Mental Health Association ... within hours you will have a doctor. A psychologist is a good idea as well, just to go and talk to somebody," says Trudeau. "But only seven per cent of our [health care budget] goes to mental illness. We have got to change that. I know someone in government."
You can listen to the full interview below:
[audio mp3="http://blackburnnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/trudeau_audio.mp3"][/audio]
