MM27 Ambassador of the Game: Banyan Lehman

On Friday, January 26th, McFadden’s Movement proudly hosted Banyan Lehman as the MM27 Ambassador of the Game. 

A Guelph native, and a second-year Engineering student at the University of Guelph, Banyan shared that mental health has affected almost every member of her family, some of her friends, while also personally being diagnosed with clinical depression four months ago. 

“I had known something was wrong for about six years,” Banyan explained of her recent diagnosis. “I struggled with self-harm since I was 13-14 years old, and I got a lot worse last semester with school.” 

“I just realized I needed to do something for myself,” she continued. “I know that my life is really good, and I have a lot of things going for me, but sometimes you can’t help but feel really crappy, and I wanted to do something about it.” 

Banyan, who is also a big hockey fan and a defenseman for the Guelph Girls Intermediate A team, believes it’s important to continue the conversation, but not just because of her own experiences. 

“It’s important to know someone always has your back,” Banyan said of her advocacy for mental health. “It’s important for people to be there for each other.”