Lynn Cunningham - her attempts to get help for mental illness and addictions​

Writer and professor Lynn Cunningham spoke to us recently about what she wants care teams to know about her mental illness. Lynn has bipolar disorder and it took years for her to be diagnosed and treated. She also manages addictions to alcohol and tobacco.

In this video, she tells us about her mental illness and speaks directly about what she needed then and still needs from her care team. 

Lynn has also written an article for The Walrus, where she describes, with great honesty and humour, her attempts to quit smoking. This is after decades of smoking 50 cigarettes per day. You can read her story in "Giving Up the Ghost: When it comes to smoking, you're on your own."

And in this CBC Radio interview on Q with Brent Bambury, Lynn argues that nicotine dependence should be taken as seriously as drug or alcohol addiction, and that people addicted to nicotine need more resources and fewer barriers.