May is a month filled with meaningful opportunities to learn, connect, and show up for those impacted by severe and persistent mental illness such as schizophrenia and psychosis.
It’s a time that invites us to pause, reflect, and ask ourselves what we truly know and believe about mental illness. For the individuals and families, we walk alongside every day; that question matters a lot.
This May, we’re turning that question into action. From awareness days to community events and podcast conversations, there’s a lot happening, and plenty of ways to get involved.
Voices of Hope: A Free Community Event in Honour of Schizophrenia & Psychosis Awareness Day – May 23 (Saturday)
Voices of Hope: From Expression to Understanding is hosted by the BC Schizophrenia Society (BCSS) and brings together art, music, lived experience, and education in a way that’s open and welcoming to everyone.
Join in on Saturday, May 23, 2026, from 1:00–3:00 pm at the Cultch Historic Theatre in Vancouver or tune in live via Zoom from wherever you are.
Highlights of the day include:
- Registered Art Therapist Wendy Clark will explore the history of schizophrenia and psychosis in art and guide the audience through a creative activity.
- Award winning Artist and author Sandra Yuen will share new work and reflect on how creativity has shaped her own lived experience journey.
- The Highs & Lows Choir will have a musical performance celebrating resilience and connection.
- A panel of community voices — people with lived experience, family members, and educators — will close the afternoon with an honest conversation about what it really means to cope, recover, and be understood.
Attendance is free, and advance registration is required for both in-person and online participation.
New Episodes of Look Again: Mental Illness Re-Examined Podcast
The BC Schizophrenia Society’s podcast Look Again: Mental Illness Re-Examined is back with two new episodes this month:
Episode 4 — Art Therapy (released May 6)
How can art become a refuge when words aren’t enough?
This episode of Look Again explores art therapy as a powerful, compassionate tool for mental health recovery. BCSS art therapist Nicole Parekh shares how creative expression can offer safety, autonomy, and connection—especially for people living with schizophrenia and other persistent mental illnesses.
Award winning artist and writer Sandra Yuen also reflects on using art to cope, heal, and find identity beyond diagnosis. Together, their stories show how creativity can support recovery, build community, and open new ways of understanding, even when symptoms remain.
Episode 5 — AI and Mental Illness (to be released May 20)
What happens when artificial intelligence doesn’t just answer questions, but reinforces beliefs that aren’t real?
In this episode of Look Again, Allan Brooks shares his first-person experience of AI‑induced psychosis; something he had no prior history of. What began as helping his child with math spiraled into delusions fueled by constant validation from a chatbot. Allan reflects on the emotional fallout, gaps in mental health care, and why public awareness is urgently needed.
This episode raises critical questions about safety, responsibility, and the importance of human connection in an AI‑driven world.
Listen to Look Again: Mental Illness Re-Examined on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, or wherever you get your podcasts and watch it on YouTube.
Purple Lights Across BC in Honour of Schizophrenia & Psychosis Awareness Day
On May 24, in recognition of Schizophrenia & Psychosis Awareness Day, landmarks across British Columbia will be lit up in purple.
Each light represents a commitment to the individuals and families living with these illnesses every day that they are seen, they are not alone, and that mental illness deserves compassion and understanding, not fear or judgment.
This year, look out for purple lights at the following locations:
- New West City Hall (New Westminster, BC)
- Vancouver Convention Centre
- Vancouver City Hall and Burrard Street Bridge
- Canada Place Sails + Cauldron (Vancouver, BC)
- Science World (Vancouver, BC)
- BC Legislature Building (Victoria, BC)
- Maple Ridge City Hall
- Surrey Civic Plaza
- Lafarge Lake Fountain & LED Light Columns (Coquitlam, BC)
- Fitzsimmons Creek Bridge (Whistler, BC)
- Kelowna City of Sails (Kelowna, BC)
- Bastion (Nanaimo, BC)
- Light Up the City (Langley, BC)
If you see one, take a moment to share it with someone who needs to hear that they are not alone.
Regional Events Across The Province
In the days leading up to Schizophrenia and Psychosis Awareness Day on May 24th, our regional teams are organizing and participating in a variety of local events designed to foster connection, education, and support. These initiatives—ranging from spin classes to information-sharing events—provide a space to learn and connect closer to home. We encourage you to reach out to your local educators to see what’s happening in your area or to find out how you can get involved.
Show Up This May
Stigma does not disappear on its own. It changes one conversation, one moment of understanding, one act of showing up at a time. This May, there are many ways to be part of that change, at Voices of Hope, under a purple light, at an online event, or with your earbuds listening to Look Again on the way to work.
However you engage, every moment of understanding makes a difference.