2021 - now

International

Duration: ongoing

Design Lead

volunteer work

mental health, mental health literacy, agency, self help, community, psychotherapy

Teaching people how to speak the language of mental health, I Speak Mental Health consists of an accessible self help journal based on research and psychotherapy, alongside a platform to publish texts.

I Speak

Mental Health

Focusing on mental health, I Speak Mental Health is two-fold:

a platform that helps aspiring writers publish their work related to mental health.

an interactive life-companion in the form of booklets on Relaxation, Clarity, Sleep Hygiene, Active Listening and Day to Day Structure, aimed at creating accessible help for self help

Speaking the Language of Mental Health

Teaching people how to speak the language of mental health forms one of the core pillars of I Speak Mental Health, and is also the background for the name.

I Speak Mental Health is a volunteer project still in the developmental phase, and we’re getting close to publishing the booklets on the I Speak Mental Health website.

Self Help Journal

Taking the user through a journey of CBT based exercises, we learn about mental health, how to ask for help, take care of ourselves and help others, guided by personified emotions.

The journal consists of six smaller booklets;

Introduction
Daily Structure
Sleep Hygiene
Relaxation
Clarity
Active Listening

Background

I Speak Mental Health’s founding team consists of a publishing lead, a content lead and me, the design lead. My co-founders have education in psychology, and the content lead works as an assistant psychologist.

The booklets are where most of my work lies.

I Speak Mental Health Values

we strive to meet ourselves and others with kindness, compassion and curiosity
we aim to create a safe, non-judgmental and welcoming space
this is a space for learning
we let go of fear, blame and shame
there is no one right way

Screengrab of the I Speak Mental Health website. Unpublished at present

Rewards / Acknowledgements

2020: UofG Santander programme for student entrepreneurs

2020: John Smith UofG Innovation Award for development of the original kit

2021: Aspect Universities Accelerator for social science ventures

Personified Emotions

As a way to visualise emotions many of us experience throughout life, a family of characters were born. These characters help as a guide throughout the journal, helping us name some of the feelings that might be at play.

Noah Albrectsen