“Am I allowed to swear?” asked former TSN broadcast personality Michael Landsberg in front of an audience in Essex this past weekend.

“People see me in a certain way, so I should start by saying: I’m not a d**k.”

After assuring that “TV persona isn’t necessarily real-life persona,” Landsberg told the laughing crowd that he was thankful to talk to them about mental health.

“I battle an illness called depression. I battle an illness called anxiety,” he shared. “I’m on medication today, and tomorrow, and likely the rest of my life.”

“The payoff to all of that is: I’m not ashamed. I’m not embarrassed. And I’m not weak. That’s the message I want to give to you today.”

The former host of sports talk show Off the Record was the guest of honour at a charitable event at Fury Training Grounds outside Essex Memorial Arena on Saturday morning.

Organized by 19-year-old Mackenzie Cassidy, the #MindsMatter fundraiser offered participants a series of high-intensity cardio and weightlifting routines inside the Fury Training Grounds facility, with all proceeds going to the Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare Foundation.

“Physical health is a part of self-care,” Cassidy said. “It has a big effect. So we thought we’d combine a workout with talking about mental health… We’re just trying to provide more resources to our community.”

The day of sweating and fundraising was kicked off by a monologue from Landsberg, who has been devoting his post-television life to speaking publicly on mental health matters.

According to Landsberg, it all started with an on-air interview with former NHL player Stephane Richer, in which the burly Montreal Canadien revealed he battled with depression.

“As had I,” Landsberg said. “We talked about it for only about two minutes. And it changed my life… After the show went to air, I started getting emails from people who were grateful to hear me talk about depression.”

From 1997 to 2015, Off the Record gave Landsberg a platform for his many opinions on the sports world. His from-the-hip comments and clashes with guests earned Landsberg something of a reputation of being a professional jerk.

Now 64, Landsberg feels his rep — good or bad — only makes him more effective at raising awareness of mental health issues.

“I don’t look like what you might think depression looks like,” Landsberg said. “The lesson is that just because someone seems to be okay, doesn’t mean that they are okay. Those of us with depression get very good at hiding it — very good at wearing a mask.”

For Landsberg, his fabled “arrogance” as a broadcaster was part of the show. “If you’re around me hanging out, you’d probably say: ‘Huh, he doesn’t seem like he’s arrogant.’”

“TV just prevents you from seeing the subtleties of who we are. I’m not exactly who people think I am.”

Landsberg noted that the COVID-19 pandemic has been hard on everybody’s mental health. He said the event in Essex was his first in-person public speaking engagement since February 2020.