Fashion & Beauty step in to combat mental illness

October is a mental awareness month and this year we look at organizations and individuals who are helping individuals who are suffering from mental illnesses.

Founder of Unfiltered Society, Jessica Ellis suffered from severe postnatal depression following the birth of her first child. Fashion has a role to play in creating a culture where mental health stigma is filtered out of society,” said Jessica. Unfiltered Society is a fashion lifestyle brand dedicated to campaigning for, and support, mental health charities. £10 from each sale of an adult sweater and £5 from each children’s sweater is donated to a mental health charity, where customers can pick which charity to donate the money to.

Mental illnesses and disorders are deep and pervasive problems that afflict millions of South Africans, where at least 30% of South Africans have suffered from some form of mental disorder in their lifetimes. South African actress and talk show host Bonnie Mbuli, announced her new mental health series to be aired on her Instagram TV. The star took to social media to share that it was time to have conversations about depression. In her book titled Eyebags and Dimples, Bonnie opened up about her own struggle with depression. She tweeted  that ” I’m not an expert and I don’t have all the answers, I do however have a lived experience of fighting the darkness &coming out the other side to discover a version of myself I’ve always wanted to be, I want to share that with you in a way that is helpful to you”

Philosophy is a wellness beauty brand which supports a mental health initiative called the hope & grace. The wellness brand is the first major beauty company to make a brand-wide commitment to dedicate 1% of its sales toward the cause. More than 450 million people worldwide suffer from mild to serious mental health issues such as post-traumatic stress, depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, self–esteem and financial stress, are commonly known to affect women around the world. The initiative also has a helpline to contact if one is in crisis. Researchers are still trying to understand what causes mental illness, in other words, there is no one cause of mental illnesses but there are helpline, treatments and support groups are available for individuals who are affected.

Cosmopolitan Magazine explains share interesting facts about how makeup and skincare can help women who suffer from mental illness. According to Helen Wallace”, The daily act of applying makeup is a way to not only feeling better about yourself. Practicing a new technique, mastering it and then getting compliments on it from others can help you to feel better about yourself and your ability to cope with challenges when you are faced with them”

She also suggests treating yourself to products that get rid of your acne for good or adding a good blush to make up makes you look radiant, which can translate into your daily life and dramatically improve your self-esteem.