What do we want to smash?

Many people are scared to talk about mental health. When we avoid talking about it, we’re basically pretending it doesn’t exist, it is something to be ashamed of and that reinforces the stigma.

Language is powerful- context, intention and knowing your audience count for a lot in everyday chats. We hope to start a conversation and raise awareness about the impact of the language we use and the self-stigma that can stop people living life.

We have been discussing Mental Health Stigma in the studio and here are some of the things we would like to smash…

• Man up

• Don’t cry

• It’s all in your head

• Don’t think like that

• Pull yourself together

• I’m an adult, I should be able to sort my problems out

• I’m intelligent enough, how come I can’t get myself better by now?

• Everyone gets a bit depressed but they still work!

• Your car's a bit of a mess- if you sort that out you'll feel more organised

• If you don't sort it out you'll be an old woman with a lot of cats

• You've just fallen off the horse, just get back on

• Worthless

• Lazy

• Can’t cope/ Won’t cope

• Fear

• Dangerous

• Violent

• Attention seeking

• Strange

• Weird

• Not capable

• No good

• Stupid

• Nutter

• Psycho

• Mental

• I lost my job

• Weak

• I have failed

• Awkward

• Embarrassing

• I am worried about what people think of me

• Unreliable

• Shame

• Guilt

• You have nothing to be depressed about

• I'm too small

• Too fat/ too thin

• Throw like a girl

• You're too noisy

• Don't cry

• Bullying

• You're a baby

And we want you to join in. You can use anything from this list or come up with your own.

Help us create more noise about mental health stigma by writing it, smashing it and sharing it.

Lego, crockery, paper walls, balloons, fruit and veg... you can be as creative as you like, just remember to share your efforts on social media with the hashtag #SmashingStigma and tagging @DesignsInMind in your post. But whatever you smash, take care, not hurt yourself or others in the process.

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https://smashingstigma.hubbub.net/

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