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Mental health in the legal profession is a subject that is really close to my heart. It is also an issue that I strongly believe in and . . . that I hope we all talk openly about. . . . [M]ental illness is not some- thing that can be seen . . . it is something that is often hidden and in the shadows. Mental illness is not something to be dis- missed, but it is something to be spoken about without shame.
Justice O’Bonsawin described the moving experience of speaking with the mother of a troubled young person she was representing as the parent tried to explain why the child need- ed mental health counseling: “I’ll never forget she broke down and cried in front of me. And I took her into my arms, not as a lawyer, but as one mother to another.”
The description of this personally impactful moment – “one mother to another” – mean- ingfully set the tone for Justice O’Bonsawin’s discussion. She began by citing statistics that strikingly framed the issues, noting for exam- ple that: (1) more than one-in-five American adults (i.e., approximately fifty-five million persons) live with mental illness; and (2) more than 30 percent of American adults will experience a form of anxiety disorder at some point in their lives. “Look around you,” she urged the audience, “One-third of the people here, possibly including yourself, is impacted by mental illness.” She also cited a 2016 ABA study that found that: (1) approx- imately 28% of the participants were strug- gling with a form of depression; (2) 19% were experiencing some level of anxiety; (3) 23% acknowledged some level of stress; and (4) between 21% and 36% qualified as prob- lem drinkers. These statistics, she stressed, are consistent with earlier similar studies. In ad- dition, Justice O’Bonsawin addressed the two most common barriers reported by partici- pants in the studies she described: a desire by the respondents that others not find out that they needed help, and concerns about privacy and confidentiality. As she noted:
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