Jean-Francois Dupras | One summit at a time, in the name of mental health

Saved by the mountains, Jean-François Dupras challenged himself a few years ago to climb the seven summits (Seven Summits), the highest peak on each continent. His motivation? Raising awareness about mental health. And encourage them to follow their dreams and passions.

Katherine Harvey Pinard
The Press

Go back three decades. Jean-François Dupras is 13 years old. One morning, her 10-year-old sister suddenly falls very ill. She spends several months in the hospital, the doctors try to understand what afflicts her. Meanwhile, young Jean-François must deal with the frequent absence of his parents and the fear of losing his sister. He saw this period with difficulty.

In full adolescence, the young man made “bad choices” in life. At 15, he was arrested by the police and had to go to court, a process that lasted about a year. “Already, I was experiencing confused emotions with my sister, but there, I was really starting to have a problem of self-esteem,” says the man of today, 43, on the phone.

“The straw that broke the camel’s back” occurs the following year, when his parents decide to divorce. Jean-François, who had already started having difficulty at school, loses control. Until then very active, he no longer wanted to play sports. He starts partying frequently. “Problems with gambling, alcohol, drugs” follow. This is where depression enters his life.

At the age of 20, at the end of suffering, Dupras “virtually” attempted suicide. The years that followed were filled with ups and downs. The only thing that actually helps him? The mountain, which he discovers for the first time during a visit to Alberta. Gradually, he begins to do rock climbing, ice climbing and mountaineering.

Jean-François nevertheless still lives with the guilt of his gambling problems, never talks about his depression. He is not himself. For years, he drags behind him “this burden” which prevents him from moving forward…

Until the age of 36.

In training for a job in Alberta, the Quebecer injured his back. A lumbar sprain prevents him from working, which plunges him into a new depression. He spent a month and a half on his sofa “depressed, unable to move”.

“That’s when I decided to climb my biggest mountain and go get help. I called my doctor and went to consult for the first time in my life. »

It was then that Jean-François Dupras began to make peace with his past. To accept yourself. To love each other. And, why not, to use this “life experience to help inspire people”.

Mental health and the mountain

“How can I combine my two passions: mental health and the mountains? asked Jean-François Dupras. From there was born the idea of ​​launching the challenge he had dreamed of for a long time: to climb the highest peak of each continent. Thus was born his project Overcoming mental illness, one peak at a timewhich he started in 2018.

Dupras, who now resides in Canmore with his wife and two children, first tackled Mount Denali, Alaska. Accompanied by two partners, he spent 18 days on the mountain. “We were caught in a storm that lasted six days in the middle of June. It was -50 or -60 degrees. We got six feet of snow. But we succeeded the first time. »

Next stop: Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, in December 2018. Too confident after his success in Alaska, he climbed the mountain in six days rather than seven, so much so that he had nausea and headaches once arrived at the last camp – from the effects of the high mountain.

“I learned that I have to slow down,” he laughs. But it was a great climb. I loved the Tanzanian people. »

In August 2019, Dupras traveled to Russia to climb Mount Elbrus, a success despite back pain. A few months later, he rode the Aconcagua, in Argentina, solo.

During his first four climbs, Dupras raised $17,516 for the Canadian Mental Health Association – Calgary Region and $2,000 for the Douglas Foundation.

Everest

We are now at the end of 2022. Jean-François Dupras is training to climb his fifth mountain, Everest, in the fall of 2023. This mountain alone represents a financial challenge of 50 $000. The mountaineer is also actively seeking sponsorship.

That’s not all. Dupras will return to the foot of Mount Everest in 2024, this time in association with the Quebec Association for Suicide Prevention (AQPS). He will then be accompanied by 10 people bereaved by suicide – he is still looking for 5 candidates –, with whom he will complete the trek that leads to Everest base camp. The group is also committed to raising $29,030, the equivalent of the height of Mount Everest in feet, for the benefit of the AQPS. A documentary will also be shot.

Jean-François Dupras has been a lecturer for four years. By recounting his mountaineering experiences, he wants to raise awareness about mental health, teach them the importance of asking for help. And encourage them to follow their dreams.

“I think we all have a mountain to climb in life. The goal is to be happy, to help each other. »

“Me, it’s the mountain that saved me and I hope, through my adventures, to save lives too. »