The last few years have been a wild ride: with the ongoing recovery from the pandemic alongside the election season, the Filipino people have had their resilience and mental well-being thoroughly tested. The silver lining: an opportunity to highlight the importance of mental health and the work ahead of us as individuals and as a country to #EndTheStigma surrounding mental health.
The third week of May marked the annual celebration of the Philippines-Australian Friendship Day Festival at SM Megamall. An immersive three-day event was held in SM Megamall’s Mega Fashion Hall from May 20-22, and featured an array of activities and pop-ups that promoted Australian products, education opportunities, travel and cuisine, as well as Mind You Mental Health Systems, a company promoting mental health care and support.
Mind You’s Express Yourself board featured a different mental health question everyday: on Day 3, they asked “How are you practicing self-care today?”
Mind You is a mental health company that (www.mindyou.com.ph) provides comprehensive mental health solutions to organizations in the Philippines, to protect their employees with access to preventative therapy with licensed Filipino psychologists. Last year, Mind You was awarded a AUD$500,000 grant by the Australian Embassy in the Philippines (https://thebpp.com.au/partnership/mind-you-mental-health/) to extend their services to the general public and to create online support programs for vulnerable communities, including women, the LGBTQIA+ community, and the economically vulnerable. They are eager to engage the public in an open conversation about mental health, and thus take the opportunity to participate in exciting events like this one.
Mind You featured an engaging line-up of activities at their booth. They offered the opportunity to mall-goers to speak to their psychologists about anything to do with mental health – whether it was to debunk mental health myths, to better understand how therapy works, or just to have a casual conversation about how the person was really doing – over a free cup of coffee.
Business owners and HR professionals looking to elevate their employees’ wellness programs were also attracted to the booth, and got to chat with Mind You’s Sales representatives about the packages they have on offer. Additionally, there was a lucky dip bowl that gave people the chance to win exclusive Mind You merchandise, as well as a free downloadable copy of their Mental Health Conversation Starter Tool Kit. As part of their awareness campaign, the Mind You team posed a series of mental health questions to those attracted to the booth, to help get them thinking about what mental health means to them.
Mind You prompted mall-goers with the question: “What does it mean to have good mental health?”
On the last day of the event, Mind You’s CEO Yuri Marshall, Head of Operations, Miguel Valdez, and Senior Psychologist Rea Celine Villa, spoke about mental health in the Philippines, and the projects they have been working on to create generational transformation via a panel discussion hosted by newly crowned Miss Eco International Kathleen Paton, who is also a vocal mental health advocate herself.
The event was confirmation that many Filipinos are eager to tackle their mental health, and view mental healthcare support as a resource they would make use of. Visit www.mindyou.com.ph or follow them on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for more updates, announcements and mental wellness content. Join the conversation and #EndTheStigma!
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