Lived Experiences Heard: Real Voices, Real Change

World Mental Health Day, observed globally on October 10, is a reminder that mental health policies, services, and decisions are strongest when they are shaped by the people they are intended to support. The 2026 theme, Lived Experiences Heard: Real Voices, Real Change, calls attention to the importance of meaningfully engaging people with lived experience (PWLE) of mental health conditions and recognizing their knowledge as a vital form of expertise.

Lived experience refers to what someone has personally gone through, and the knowledge or understanding that can come from those experiences. As the World Health Organization recognizes, too often, PWLE are invited to share their stories but are left out of the decisions that affect their lives. Meaningful engagement goes further than listening. It creates opportunities for people to influence decisions, co-design services, strengthen peer-led approaches, challenge stigma, and hold systems accountable.

Employers have an opportunity to put this theme into practice by allowing employees to be part of the strategic conversation, not simply offering them another wellness activity to participate in. When organizations build consistent ways for employees with lived experience to shape policies, benefits, communications, and workplace practices, they gain insight that can strengthen both the wellness strategy and the broader organizational strategy. Here are several ways to move from listening to action:

• Create supportive environments. Use an empathy-driven management approach to foster resilience and create spaces where people with lived experience feel safe, valued, and empowered to speak up.
• Provide training and tools. Through wellness initiatives, offer employees opportunities to build the knowledge and skills needed to support colleagues with lived experience. At the same time, provide PWLE with practical resources to help them navigate and thrive in and out of the work environment.
• Allow genuine opportunities for input. Invite employees with lived experience to help shape mental health policies, benefits, communications, and workplace support. Allow engagement in ways beyond only sharing personal stories. Consider including opportunities for meaningful participation in decisions that affect employees’ well-being.
• Support peer-led approaches. Opportunities such as peer support and employee resource groups can help reduce stigma and create spaces where people feel understood. These efforts can also help organizations identify gaps in support and respond in ways that are more employee centered and practical.
• Review policies through a mental health lens. Consider how workplace expectations, leave policies, accommodations, communication practices, and return-to-work processes affect employees living with mental health conditions. When employees help identify barriers, organizations are better positioned to create support that is respectful, accessible, and responsive.
• Strengthen accountability and follow-through. Listening builds trust when it leads to visible action. Share how employee feedback is being used, communicate next steps clearly, and revisit mental health initiatives regularly, as part of the broader organizational and wellness strategy, to ensure they continue to meet employees’ needs.

This year’s theme is also a reminder that person-centered mental health care should extend beyond the workplace. PWLE are calling for systems that support individuals in their communities, protect their rights and reduce reliance on isolating, long-stay psychiatric institutions. Whether in health care, public policy, or the workplace, the goal is the same: build support with people, not simply for them.

On this World Mental Health Day, let us move from listening to action by creating spaces where lived experience informs decisions, strengthens support, and leads to real change.

If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org for support in the U.S.

Call or text 9-8-8 or visit Get Help | 9-8-8: Suicide Crisis Helpline for support in Canada.

Resources

World Mental Health Day

988 Lifeline

Suicide Crisis Helpline

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  Ashton Sholund

  Associate Director, Wellness Education and Content

  Wellness Alliance

  As a Wellness Content and Information Specialist at the Wellness Alliance, Ashton is passionate about supporting employee well-being and advancing workplace wellness initiatives. With over 12 years of experience as a certified health coach, Ashton has worked extensively in the worksite wellness sector, empowering individuals and organizations to prioritize health and create sustainable wellness strategies. Outside of work, she enjoys group exercise classes and participating in a monthly book club to nurture both her physical and mental well-being.