jrowe

My entry is titled, “Mental Health Matters.” My entry demonstrates that life can be extremely busy, and many things can be overwhelming. Many people don’t realize what may be going through a person’s mind everyday. A person’s mind can get so full that it turns into a bunch of negative thoughts, that are running through your mind. Deep down that someone can conquer what may be going on mentally by listening to their heart, and going to find someone trusted to talk to about what they are feeling inside.

I know that a lot of people experience mental health differently and the things holding people back from being happy can be one thing or many. People can’t just “be happy”, it takes more than that. The person in my drawing is holding a watering can and the flower on there is meant to represent someone’s mental health and the person allowing it to grow and flourish. Drawing this made me really happy and I think that a lot of people feel held back by certain things, but once people realize whatever it is that will make them happy they can grow

My submission shows how mental health can change daily. You can do the same thing everyday but you can still feel like you’re in different worlds. Every day you can feel like you lost a running out of time and your going nowhere but other days you feel free and you have a purpose and you feel the time is right.

My art work shows the different sides of mental health. One side is about when I am feeling strong and confident, I feel invincible. BUT behind that I have lots of insecurities and I overthink a lot.

Growing plants is a big part of a world that supports my mental health so I drew a person gathering dirt around a new plant that curls into a green ribbon. I thought that it was a creative way to incorporate the ribbon into the plant showing how plants can help improve mental health. Plants are proven to help improve mental and physical health. Not only is it peaceful to walk through nature but a study shows that trees and plants release phytoncides which not only protect the tree but if inhaled help lower stress hormones. Sometimes the simple act of planting a seed, flower or plant can give someone purpose and something to look forward to seeing grow.

My art reflects upon the idea of young people being seen and heard with their mental health. I feel as though many young people aren’t taken seriously when it comes to this, especially in younger children. This is an important problem that is overlooked in society. A world where mental health is taken seriously is what is portrayed in my painting, simply a young person being heard by an adult/therapist/person that cares. Communicating and expressing care towards young mental health creates a great impact of a sense of belonging and feeling heard.I feel like this is something the world needs. To represent how this relates back to mental health month, I included a green ribbon on the listener and on the corner table, a stack of cards that show Directing Change’s slogan and logo.

My piece aims to depict a common mental strain that students in particular face a lot of; anxiety. Pressures are piled upon many students, largely from expectations from parents, society, and themselves. Anxiety often goes ignored until it reaches a breaking point for many students though, as there is a culture in pushing oneself until burnout. This is not a healthy practice, and the youth should be educated in the fact that they should allow themselves time to step back, reflect, and get help for any negative emotions they accumulate. The splash of color in my painting, incorporated through the lime green ribbon, represents the help that is available in a sea of warped and grim emotions, show through perspective and monotone colors. It is my hope that through increased mental health awareness, more adolescents will be able to recognize their own mental hardships, and find help in the communities around them.

It is a poster with graphics of people talking to each other, along with a Green ribbon representing mental health awareness, a quote from Lauren Fogel Mersy, and a text box saying that you can talk to each other about Mental issues.