Fighting Stigma During Halloween

It's that time of year again for ghosts and goblins, but also it is a time of stigma, especially more than usual, for individuals with a mental illness as costumes and attractions are featured depicting mentally ill individuals as ghoulish, deranged monsters of the night. Last year, I wrote on how you can fight the stigma surrounding mental illness around Halloween: Help Stamp Out Stigma This Halloween. I can't emphasize enough how hurtful these depictions and stereotypes can be to individuals with a mental illness or their family and yet they continue.

I think for next year's Halloween (seeing as Halloween is tomorrow and I'm tight on money), I'm going to design a t-shirt to wear out in public to bring awareness to this issue and challenge stereotypes. Here's what it'd look like: