Getting Out from Under Depression
- E32
- 39:28
- January 19th 2026
Depression is a dementia risk factor. In this special episode marking Blue Monday – a day to discuss mental health – we’ll discuss the relationship between depression and dementia. We’ll hear from Faith Rockburne, Peer Support Specialist with St. Michael's Hospital and an Educator at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, as she shares her journey with depression, and the tools and strategies she used to break her cycle of mental illness, including never losing hope. And Dr. Zahinoor Ismail, Clinician Scientist and Professor of Psychiatry, Neurology, Epidemiology, and Pathology & Laboratory Medicine at the Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, will share his learnings and insights on the link between depression and dementia risk, and some of the ways depression can be treated and managed. Tune in at defydementia.org, or anywhere you get your podcasts.
Our Guests:
Faith Rockburne is a Lived Experience Advocate for mental health. Since 2013, Faith has shared her journey with mental illness with a wide variety of audiences to help break the stigma of mental illness. She is also a Peer Support Specialist with St. Michael's Hospital and an Educator at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.
Dr. Zahinoor Ismail is a Clinician Scientist and Professor of Psychiatry, Neurology, Epidemiology, and Pathology & Laboratory Medicine at the Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary. He is certified in Behavioural Neurology & Neuropsychiatry and Geriatric Psychiatry, with over 25 years of clinical experience. He has published almost 350 scientific papers, is Chair of the Canadian Conference on Dementia and of the Canadian Consensus Conference on the Diagnosis and Treatment of Dementia Guideline Group, and was Co-Chair of the Government of Canada Ministerial Advisory Board for Dementia from 2023-2025.
Defy Dementia – The podcast for anyone with a brain, by Baycrest
Defy Dementia is an empowering new podcast by Baycrest that is dedicated to helping you reduce your dementia risk. Join us on a captivating exploration of key dementia risk factors as we interview experts, hear inspiring stories from persons with lived experience, and share practical advice to help you optimize your aging journey. Tune in and subscribe at defydementia.org or anywhere you get your podcasts, and unlock the power to age fearlessly and defy dementia.
Each episode will be complemented by a short video, infographic, and related resources to help you take control of your brain health.
Defy Dementia is hosted by Jay Ingram (Canadian author and broadcaster) and Dr. Allison Sekuler (President and Chief Scientist, Baycrest Academy for Research and Education, and the Centre for Aging + Brain Health Innovation). The podcast is generously funded by the Public Health Agency of Canada, the Slaight family fundation and CABHI.
About Our Hosts
Jay Ingram has more than 40 years of experience as an author, broadcaster, and science communicator. He was co-host of Discovery Channel's science show, Daily Planet, for 16 years, and was instrumental in helping shape the program format. He also hosted CBC Radio’s Quirks and Quarks for 12 years, earning him two ACTRA Awards, and had a weekly science column in the Toronto Star for 12 years. He has written 20 books. In 1984, Jay was awarded the Sandford Fleming Medal from the Royal Canadian Institute for his efforts to popularize science, and he also earned the Royal Society of Canada’s McNeil Medal for the Public Awareness of Science in 1997. In 2000, Jay was awarded a Michael Smith Award for Science Promotion by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. He is a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and in 2009 he was named to The Order of Canada. In addition, he is the 2015 recipient of the Walter C. Alvarez award for medical writing given by the American Medical Writers Association.
Dr. Allison Sekuler (FSEP, FPsyS, FAPS) is the Sandra A. Rotman Chair in Cognitive Neuroscience at Baycrest’s Rotman Research Institute, the President and Chief Scientist at the Baycrest Academy for Research and Education and at the Centre for Aging + Brain Health Innovation (CABHI). A graduate of Pomona College (BA, Mathematics and Psychology) and the University of California, Berkeley (PhD, Psychology), Dr. Sekuler holds faculty positions in the Department of Psychology at the University of Toronto and the Department of Psychology, Neuroscience and Behaviour at McMaster University. Her foundational research uses behavioural and neuroimaging approaches to understand perception, cognition, and the brain; and her clinical and translational research aims to develop methods to prevent, detect, and treat age-related sensory and cognitive decline. Dr. Sekuler has won numerous national and international awards for research, teaching, and leadership – including serving as the country’s first Canada Research Chair in Cognitive Neuroscience and recently being named one of WXN's Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada (2019).