No doubt you have already read about Stop Stigma Together, the national Grand Challenge to eliminate the stigma around mental health and substance use disorders. You may have even seen the Ad Council’s PSAs, Love, Your Mind. Perhaps you have even signed up for the upcoming first National Summit to End Stigma, June 24-26 (which has scholarships if $ is the only barrier to your attendance).
This is the fifth Grand Challenge I have worked on, and we are in year 3 of what will likely be a 20-year effort. Already, we have pulled together the big, well-known organizations to lead jointly, plus another 200+ nonprofits and government agencies. Now, it is time to begin reaching deeper into our country’s fabric.
I am looking for social media influencers who are specializing in mental health or substance use disorders. If you follow someone or know someone personally, please let me know. I am building my outreach list, looking for advocates who can help us take the message out to America that mental health is health. If you or someone you know is suffering, you deserve to seek treatment just as much as someone who is suffering from diabetes or a broken leg. We all do.
“We need to change the culture of this topic and make it OK to speak about mental health and suicide.”
– Luke Richardson
