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Miranda Newman is a journalist, editor, and author. Her debut memoir-in-essays, Rough Magic: Living with Borderline Personality Disorder was an instant national bestseller. Miranda’s award-nominated feature and opinion pieces have appeared in The Globe and Mail, Chatelaine, The Walrus, Broadview, and more.

Miranda holds a bachelor of journalism from Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly, Ryerson). In 2022, she completed a fellowship at Yale University’s program for recovery and community health and went on to mentor incoming fellows. Miranda speaks regularly on topics related to mental health, psychology, and trauma at events across North America.

Speaking Topics

What does recovery from mental illness look like?

“What are your recovery goals?” This question was posed to Miranda Newman shortly after her third stay in psychiatric intensive care. It was a question that was both simple and daunting. Unlike recovering from physical illness, mental health recovery is harder to conceptualize and rarely linear. Was recovery fewer panic attacks and thoughts of self-destruction? Longer periods between hospitalizations? The ability to return to full-time work?

In this talk, Newman explores the complex and often storied reality of mental health recovery. Informed by her lived experience recovering from borderline personality disorder, an often fatal mental illness typically viewed as untreatable, and her fellowship at Yale University’s program for recovery and community health, Newman examines the best and worst practices in community-based mental health treatment, unpacks social attitudes toward mental illness, and highlights gaps in policy. A talk rooted in hope, Newman reminds audiences that recovery isn’t the sole responsibility of the individual. It takes a village to help a person recover from mental illness. 

Supporting mental health in the workplace

Miranda Newman worked herself to the point of hospitalization. Twice. All the evidence of mounting burnout was there: poor sleep, panic attacks, missed deadlines, weight loss, irritability, and extreme emotions. But with no workplace mental health support and fewer coping skills, Newman just kept working until her suicidal urges grew so powerful that inpatient care was her only option.

In today’s fast-paced and high-pressure work environments, mental health challenges are increasingly common. According to the Canadian Psychological Association, at least 500,000 Canadians miss work due to mental illness every week, with an estimated cost of $51 billion annually. Unfortunately, the Canadian Mental Health Association notes that just 36 per cent of employees feel comfortable discussing a mental health concern with a manager.

Supporting mental health in the workplace can improve productivity, employee satisfaction, staff retention, and teamwork. In this talk, Newman offers strategies to foster mental wellness in the workplace. From accommodation, to education, to implementing wellness programs, Newman’s talk will equip audiences with the ability to make a meaningful impact on the mental health of those around them and address mental health concerns before they become crises.

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