Many people have cycled across Canada for personal achievement or for a cause, but Matthew Dickson is probably the first to pedal from coast to coast as a person who has suffered from schizophrenia and now wants to help others battling the illness.
A resident of Saint Andrews, New Brunswick, Dickson started his journey from Vancouver on June 4.
“I’ve gone over halfway now so I think I’ve proven a bit of a point, that this is possible. I’m hoping to get to Newfoundland in late August or early September,” Dickson told SooToday Monday as he prepared to leave Pancake Bay to travel to the Sault.
Dickson cycled across the country as part of a Tour du Canada group in the early 1990s.
That was before he was diagnosed with schizophrenia at the age of 22.
Now, at 51, he’s cycling alone and is raising funds to help provide treatment to those battling schizophrenia in Canada and in developing countries.
“I’m 40 or 50 pounds heavier, 30 years older and I’m doing everything by myself but I’ve got a cell phone and Internet which I didn’t have last time. The last time, I used pay phones and letters to stay in touch,” Dickson said.
Canadians can visit Dickson's website to donate to the Schizophrenia Society of Canada or to provincial Schizophrenia Society groups.
They can also donate to Mind Aid, started by Dickson to fund basic treatment for those with mental illnesses in developing countries.
“People recently diagnosed with schizophrenia are thinking ‘what does my life hold in store for me?’ They’re thinking ‘all my dreams are shattered,’” Dickson said.
“I didn’t know if I would get my life back. I was so disabled. There was so much I couldn’t do. I didn’t know if I would get better. I didn’t know of anybody who had gone through this and come out the other side. But I’m that person 30 years later.”
Dickson said that while he did not experience symptoms such as hallucinations, he did experience a lack of motivation.
“I just didn’t want to join anything. I literally wanted to be in a coma for 15 years. There was anxiety, depression, disorganized thinking.”
He said that medication worked, but very slowly.
“I kept improving. I found a job. I bought a home, different cars over the years. I was never homeless.”
“My message for people, especially starting out with the illness, is that it can be really painful at the beginning but with treatment pain can come down to more manageable levels that will allow you to carry on for much longer than you thought. A lot of people attempt to take their life with this illness but that extreme pain you’re feeling in the beginning will come down with treatment.”
Dickson said he is urging schizophrenia patients to stay hopeful as researchers continue to work on treatments.
He said he also wants to break the stigma and shatter myths that people with schizophrenia can be violent.
Of his cross Canada voyage, Dickson said “the weather hasn’t been too bad. I’ve had about four days of rain and some tailwinds across the Prairies and I did have some heat in BC, but I still had my spirits up. I stayed hydrated and took a couple of extra rest days.”
Pitching his tent and staying at campgrounds along the way, Dickson is encouraging people to honk their horns in support as they spot him cycling beside the road and also to stop and chat if they wish.
