The story
A life spent asking what actually helps
At 15, Mark stood on the outside of a bridge railing in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. A stranger stopped, stayed with him, and pulled him back to safety. Mark later learned that the stranger was Mike Richey. They found each other more than a decade later, after Mark's TEDxToronto talk carried the story around the world.
That night did not make recovery simple. Mark's experience included severe depression and anxiety, repeated hospitalizations, and years spent trying to find care that could meet the complexity of what he was living through. It also left him with a lasting question: why does some help reach people while other help, even when well intended, does not?
He has pursued that question from several sides of the mental health system: as a person receiving care, a frontline practitioner, a national program and policy leader, a journalist, and a public advocate. That range is the foundation of his work today.
The goal is not to turn pain into inspiration. It is to understand what helps, name what does not, and build something better.
Biography
From lived experience to public work
Mark Henick is a Canadian author, broadcaster, keynote speaker, and mental health advocate. For more than two decades, he has connected personal experience with clinical practice, organizational leadership, public policy, and journalism.
Cape Breton and the story that travelled
Mark Henick grew up in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. As a teenager living with severe depression and anxiety, he experienced repeated hospitalizations and suicide attempts. At 15, Mike Richey intervened as Mark let go from a bridge in Sydney and pulled him back to safety.
Mark and Mike did not know how to find each other after that night. More than a decade later, Mark shared the story in his 2013 TEDxToronto talk. The attention surrounding the talk helped him find Mike, and the two reunited in 2015.
Working inside mental health systems
Mark began his professional career in frontline mental health care, including work as a counsellor and case manager with CMHA Toronto. At 22, he became president of the Canadian Mental Health Association in New Brunswick, the youngest person to lead a provincial CMHA division.
He went on to manage Mental Health Works at CMHA Ontario and later served as National Director of Strategic Initiatives at the Canadian Mental Health Association. His work moved between direct service, workplace mental health, public education, program development, and national advocacy.
Policy and public service
From 2011 to 2017, Mark served as a non-government director on the board of the Mental Health Commission of Canada. In 2014, he was a national spokesperson for the Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health Faces of Mental Illness campaign.
His advocacy has included public campaigns against products that mock suicide and testimony before Parliament on mental health policy, including medical assistance in dying when mental disorder is the sole underlying condition. Across this work, his central argument has remained consistent: invitations to seek help must be matched by care that people can actually reach and use.
Journalism, books, and the public conversation
Mark has brought mental health reporting and analysis to television, radio, print, and podcasts. His broadcasting work includes nearly 1,200 nationally syndicated CBC Radio segments, production for Cross Country Checkup, and writing for CBC News Network. He has also led strategic storytelling and communications at Kids Help Phone.
His memoir, So-Called Normal: A Memoir of Family, Depression and Resilience, was published by HarperCollins Canada in 2021. His writing has appeared in publications including CNN, CNBC, USA Today, the Chicago Tribune, and The Globe and Mail. Today, his work spans journalism, keynote speaking, training, writing, and mental health strategy.
Professional record
Experience behind the work
Mark's perspective is shaped by formal study and by work across care, advocacy, organizational leadership, broadcasting, and public education.
Selected Leadership
- National Director of Strategic Initiatives, Canadian Mental Health Association
- Program Manager, Mental Health Works, CMHA Ontario
- Executive Director of Strategic Storytelling and Communications, Kids Help Phone
- Non-government director, Mental Health Commission of Canada board, 2011 to 2017
Education
- Master of Science in child development
- Master of Journalism
- Bachelor of Arts with interdisciplinary honours in psychology and philosophy
- Postgraduate Certificate in Neuroscience and Mental Health, King's College London
Journalism and Media
- Senior Writer, CBC News Network
- Nearly 1,200 nationally syndicated CBC Radio segments
- Television appearances across Canadian and international networks
- Bylines in CNN, CNBC, USA Today, the Chicago Tribune, and The Globe and Mail
Writing and Speaking
- Bestselling author of So-Called Normal
- TEDxToronto speaker with more than seven million views on the official talk
- Keynotes and training for organizations across North America and internationally
- Host and producer of long-form mental health podcasts and conversations
TEDxToronto, 2013
Why We Need to Talk About Suicide
Originally published as "Why We Choose Suicide," Mark's talk examines how suicidal crisis narrows perception and why direct, human conversation matters. The official TEDx upload has been viewed more than seven million times.
Watch the talk
HarperCollins Canada, 2021
So-Called Normal
A Memoir of Family, Depression and Resilience
Mark's bestselling memoir follows the family history, mental illness, care systems, and acts of connection that shaped his life. It resists the idea of a neat recovery story and asks what resilience looks like when a life remains complicated.
For media and events
Press portraits
High-resolution portraits, stage introductions, biographies, presentation topics, and production notes are available in Mark's speaker kit.
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New Media, Essays, and Updates
Occasional updates from Mark's speaking, writing, advocacy, and media work.
No spam. Just useful updates and ideas worth reading.
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Keynotes, training, and media appearances for audiences in Canada and around the world.
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