Raising awareness of poor mental health with photography

Jade Burrell
May 3, 2021
2 min read

Mental health awareness week takes place this year between May 10-16. Our mental health is extremely important to our wellbeing and it is vital that we are able to talk about it.

Photographer Laura Brown feels so strongly about raising awareness for poor mental health that she has an Instagram dedicated to it called @mental_health_photo_project.

"I wanted to do this photography project as I feel strongly that there is still a great deal of work to be done in raising awareness of mental health conditions," Laura says.

"I wanted to create a platform to share people's experiences to show that the range of symptoms that can manifest but also to highlight the ways in which people have been able to find respite."

Photography became a huge part of Laura's life as she struggled with her own mental health and found that creative projects helped her enormously.

Laura uses her photography project fight the stigma and misconceptions surrounding poor mental health whilst aiming to empower those who struggle with their mental health.

With one in four people statistically known to suffer from poor mental health, it's important to fight the stigma around it and to encourage a conversation to open up.

"It's definitely a subject that needs ongoing public discussion and ongoing awareness building," Laura believes.

"I think photography and art is a great medium though which to raise awareness as people are very visual creatures and images can create an impact in a much more immediate and powerful way."

In her Instagram posts, Laura shares her knowledge of poor mental health. For example, her photo for anxiety notes some of the symptoms and explains why it's important to help people with anxiety.

She also advises people visit Mind or Samaritans for more information and support.

Laura hopes that her photography project will "connect with and empower people who might be feeling isolated because of their symptoms and experiences, especially during the pandemic mental health is has become especially at risk."

Follow Laura's photography project here.