She works for the Bell Let's Talk Mental Health program, including Bell Let's Talk Day. Hughes uses her past problems with depression to help others. "Hughes battled deep depression, which [almost ruined] her life, after winning two bronze medals in cycling at the 1996 Olympics." Since 2013, Hughes has started yearly bike rides across Canada to talk about mental health. In 2015, the CTV-produced documentary Clara's Big Ride premiered on the fifth annual Bell Let's Talk Day. Her memoir, "Open Heart, Open Mind", was published in 2015.