KickBack seeks local voices to share mental health stories for upcoming series

Paris Councillor Lukas Oakley was one of several people interviewed during the 2026 Kickback for Mental Health series.

Casandra Turnbull

Managing Editor

After more than a decade of encouraging people to speak openly about mental health, the team behind KickBack is looking for new voices willing to share their stories — and potentially help someone else feel less alone.

The locally produced mental health series is preparing for its 11th year and organizers are inviting people from Brantford, Brant County and the surrounding community to take part in conversations expected to air early next year.

Producer Ben Strasser said one lesson has remained clear after years of listening to people talk candidly about their experiences: mental health struggles are far more common than they may appear.

“One of the biggest things I have learned over the last decade is that, in one way or another, everyone struggles with their mental health,” Strasser said.

“The circumstances may be different and the severity may be different, but so many people are carrying things that nobody else can see. Unfortunately, a large number of us still feel like we have to carry those struggles alone. We don't reach out, we don't talk about what we are feeling, and that isolation can very quickly create a spiral.”

That desire to break through isolation has been central to KickBack since its creation. Previous editions have brought conversations about mental health into familiar community settings rather than traditional studios, featuring people speaking about subjects ranging from parenting and grief to trauma, addiction, recovery and workplace stress. Last year's series featured more than 30 conversations filmed across Brantford and Brant County.

This year, Strasser said organizers want to hear from people with a wide range of experiences, including those who may question whether their own story is important enough to tell.

“The first thing I would tell someone is that nobody's story carries more weight than someone else's,” he said.

“We have a tendency to compare our struggles and convince ourselves that what we have experienced isn't serious enough, difficult enough or important enough to talk about. But our struggles are our own, and what someone is carrying should never be diminished simply because someone else may be going through something different.”

Potential participants could include someone currently experiencing mental health challenges, someone who has emerged from a difficult period, a family member or caregiver who has supported another person, or a professional working in the mental health field.

Strasser said participants remain in control of what they choose to discuss.

“You don't have to have everything figured out. You just have to be willing to have a conversation.”

For people interested in learning more before deciding whether to participate, KickBack will hold its first information night Sept. 18 from 7 to 9 p.m. at Up Yoga + Wellness in Paris.

People can meet the team, ask questions and learn what taking part involves without making a commitment.

Organizers are also using social media to reach potential participants and reconnecting with people who have previously appeared on KickBack, either to hear where their journeys have taken them or connect with others who may have a story to share.

Strasser said one encouraging change has been seeing more men step forward to discuss their mental health and have conversations that have traditionally been difficult for many men to have openly.

“We have personally seen an increase in men reaching out to us, sharing their struggles and wanting to be part of these conversations,” he said. “Seeing that shift happening gives me a lot of hope and is a huge reason why I want to keep pushing this project forward.”

While KickBack is intended to normalize conversations about mental health broadly, its message also intersects with suicide prevention, particularly the importance of reducing isolation and encouraging people to reach out before they reach a crisis point.

“When someone is struggling, it can become very easy to believe that nobody understands, nobody cares or that the people around them would somehow be better off without them,” Strasser said. “One of the things these conversations can do is challenge that isolation.

“There are people who care. There are people who would notice if you weren't here. There are people who want the opportunity to help.”

Strasser said speaking about difficult thoughts and feelings can itself be an important first step toward finding support.

“I also believe there is tremendous power in saying out loud what you are going through. Keeping everything inside can allow those thoughts and feelings to become bigger and heavier. Talking to someone can begin to take some of that power away and, hopefully, connect someone with support before they reach a crisis point.”

The conversations can also help friends, relatives, coworkers and others better recognize when somebody around them may be struggling and understand the importance of listening.

After more than 80 hours of conversations recorded through KickBack over the years, Strasser said one story from the project's early days continues to illustrate what organizers hope the series can accomplish.

He learned of a family, two parents and their two children, who were watching KickBack together around their dinner table. During a commercial break, one child began talking about something they had been struggling with. The other child followed, then their mother.

Eventually, their father began talking too.

“From what I was told, he was someone who rarely showed emotion and certainly wasn't someone who normally talked openly about his feelings,” Strasser said.

“But something about hearing other people share their stories created enough safety around that dinner table for the entire family to become vulnerable with one another.”

Strasser said KickBack does not suggest that an interview or video can solve someone's mental health challenges. Instead, its purpose is to create an opening for conversations that might otherwise never happen.

“We aren't pretending that a video or an interview can solve someone's problems. What we can do is start a conversation that may not have happened otherwise.

“And sometimes one conversation can change everything.”