As we remember Robin Williams, remember help is close at hand

Support just a phone call away. writes Robbie Babins- Wagner

Many of us are fascinated by celebrities.

They entertain us on screens big and small. We tune in by the tens of millions to talk shows to get a peek into their personalities and a glimpse of their personal lives.

And we spend billions on the products they endorse — from perfumes to workout routines to cookbooks.

These products make lots of money because, quite simply, many of us aspire to be like celebrities. And why not? They have tons of money, lots of the power and fame, and more than that, they all look so happy walking down all the red carpets.

Whether you flip through the occasional magazine at the airport or would never consider missing the Academy Awards, most of us indulge in at least a little celebrity watching to entertain ourselves or escape our own lives.

So, it always comes as a shock when we’re forced to realize that some of our favourite celebrities want to escape their own lives too.

The suicide of Robin Williams a year ago today shook us all.

The beloved comedian and actor killed himself after years of struggling with depression and alcoholism.

As the tributes to his mighty talent poured in, so did the reminder that mental health issues like depression — the leading cause of suicide — strike the rich and famous as much as you and me.

In fact, a World Health Organization report, Preventing Suicide: A Global Imperative, indicates that someone somewhere around the world takes their own life every 40 seconds. That’s 803,900 deaths a year.

Most of them don’t make the headlines. But when they do, it can serve as a reminder to the rest of us to seek help for depression and other

Someone somewhere around the world takes their own life every 40 seconds. That’s 803,900 deaths a year.

mental health issues.

And getting help can start with a phone call. At Calgary Counselling Centre, we get thousands of calls from people in our community every year.

For more than 50 years, we’ve been matching people with the right counsellor to help them deal with depression and other mental health issues.

Too often, we think no one cares or no one can do anything. Too often, picking up the phone or leaving the house to see a counsellor seems like impossible tasks.

But the reality is depression is treatable — 80 per cent of those who seek treatment get better.

The earlier you pay attention to it, and the earlier you seek help, the better.

Inside some of the magazines lined up at the grocery checkouts, you can find pages of photographs of famous people out and about doing ordinary activities like getting groceries or riding a bike.

The headlines above the pictures say that stars are just like us. And it’s true. Fame doesn’t shield you. Enormous wealth can’t protect you. And red carpets will not shelter you. We are all susceptible to mental health issues.

This week, the remembrances are pouring in for Robin Williams: public grieving over very private anguish.

But as we remember this wonderful comedian, let’s also remember there is help close at hand for the tens of thousands among us in Calgary who have mental health issues.

Too many of those 803,900 deaths by suicide this year will be right here in our community.

We are fascinated by celebrities. And sometimes we can learn from them.