Nowadays, more women are taking leadership positions and venturing into spaces that were once heavily male-dominated. Here in the Philippines, this is no exception. Actress and entrepreneur Yassi Pressman is one such example. On CNN’s New Day, she sat down with host Christine Jacob-Sandejas to talk about her newest venture as the first female investor and board member in Mind You.
As a mental health advocate, Pressman shares her outlook on the mental health landscape of the Philippines: “Actually Ms. Christine we have not improved; it has been very bad for a lot of us. The numbers have been inclining and I guess hindi mo rin mabablame yung tao kasi ang hirap po ng pinagdadaan natin from the virus. The pandemic shut everyone’s businesses down; that meant they’re not making money for their family, they’re losing their jobs, and they were losing hope as well to where the future will bring them. Hindi mo rin masisi yung tao kapag ang bigat bigat ng nararamdaman nila.”
Photo from Mind You
Pressman later mentioned that it was disheartening to learn of the large number of people committing suicide and going through depression here in the country, but also that this meant it was about time that we encourage that conversation to enable those suffering to recognize that they are not voiceless. As the first female investor of Mind You, she shared that Mind You aims to be able to help at least one million Filipinos by 2025. Since the company has been heavily involved in business-to-business endeavors, she hopes they will be able to use this as a springboard to be able to provide 100,000 Filipino free psychology therapy sessions when they launch to the public later this year.
Pressman herself is not a novice to mental health challenges. On the show, she shared how her grief manifested with the passing of her late father, and how it would culminate in anxiety attacks that worsened over time. Despite her struggles, she made the conscious decision to show up every day. She speaks more on this in her episode with An Open Mind with Liza Soberano. She believes that by sharing the realities of her mental health journey, she is able to help people along the way. “Being vulnerable is a sign of strength because people come up to me after that saying ‘thank you so much for telling your story because now I feel like I’m not alone’, and that gives me strength and makes me stronger.”
The actress-entrepreneur invested in Mind You, a mental health technology company in the Philippines in March 2021. To her, Mind You was a game-changer taking significant strides into the mental health space for the betterment of the country. Furthermore, she believed in the company’s mission, vision, and goals. As the first female board member of Mind You, Pressman makes sure to be involved in the company’s activities and plans for the year, making it a point to share her expertise in the mental health space.
Photo from Mind You
As mentioned by Pressman, Mind You has a rapidly growing client base: many companies are entrusting the organization with the opportunity to ensure their employees get the best mental healthcare experience. Mind You also plans to launch its therapy services to the public this year. To learn more about Mind You, you can visit their website www.mindyou.com.ph or follow them on social media @mindyoumhs for more announcements, updates, and educational resources on wellbeing and mental health.
In line with Women’s Month, Sandejas posed a question to Pressman asking the actress-entrepreneur about her message to women struggling with their mental health. Pressman answered: “Just listen to yourself. I think it is important that you’re honest with yourself. Denial is I guess a part of everybody’s lives right, but to really process and to feel for me has helped me. Everybody has a different situation right, but that’s my advice. Just be honest, listen to yourself, feel it, it’s okay to feel it, it’s okay to cry because one day you’re going to be okay, you’re going to be better.”
You may listen to the interview with CNN New Day here:
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