What's your Mental Health Story ?
Late last fall, when Executive Director of Acton-Boxborough United Way ( ABUW ), Griet Dehandschutter, walked past an empty hallway that connects Terminal B and C on the departure level at the Boston Logan Airport, the amazingly powerful giant mural exhibit on Deconstructing Stigma by McLean caught her attention. The exhibit carries stories and pictures of volunteers affected by mental illness and its stigma. These are stories of hope and resilience that the campaign participants shared with a view to offer a different perspective on mental illness. One of the displays showcases Vaidehi’s story. “I think the biggest problem in my culture is that mental illness is not thought of as a serious illness. It’s considered to be ‘all in your head’. Of course we know that’s not true”, says Vaidehi in one display. She is a writer and editor, who was raised in a South Asian family, and is referring to her anxiety and depression. These stories are powerful and Griet wondered if we could bring t