I have created a graphic novel that illustrates my own experience with depression and anxiety. My graphic novel is a way that I, as an illustrator, can be a part of solving a problem by opening up about my mental health. If we want to change the way we think of mental health issues we have to open up and expose our vulnerabilities, thereby also giving others the permission to do the same.

I want to tell the story from my point of view, where I focus on how I felt rather than the causal factors of my anxiety and depression. I aim to express these feelings and achieve this destigmatization through my illustrations.

I lived a life where I thought that the goal was to be happy, but in fact, the goal was to accept that life is filled with nuances. And if you try to push away the darker emotions, they will catch up to you and potentially become overwhelming. Life isn’t guaranteed to have a fairytale ending; even when things are good you can be certain that something difficult could be waiting around the corner. The most important thing is for us to accept that and to talk about it, both the worry about future events and the emotions that arise should something negative happen.

In this project, the main goal is to practice vulnerability with regards to ‘negative’ feelings and by telling my own story with poor mental health, contribute to a wider conversation and movement that aims to erase the taboo around these issues.