Recently launched website mindsanonymous.com provides a safe space to share mental health stories anonymously.
Minds Anonymous is an initiative set up to end the stigma that surrounds mental health, offer support to those that suffer and increase understanding of common and uncommon mental health conditions.
This month, Way to Wellbeing came onto our website as a supporting partner. Richmond Fellowship, the Early Intervention in Psychosis Team and My Cognition have all also joined the initiative and are offering support to readers and writers on the platform.
Darren Ayres, Richmond Fellowship’s Service Manager, explained why he’s supporting Minds Anonymous:
“Minds Anonymous enables not just those who experience poor mental health a voice, but also provides a platform for professionals like us to step out of the prescribed box of care and truly connect and empower people towards ownership of their recovery. Self-empowerment and ownership is the only true way forward towards recovery!”
Sponsors of the platform include: Wizmedia, Onyx Media and Communications, and Alexander Chocolate.
Since launching last month, the website has attracted nearly 1,200 unique visitors from over 40 countries and had 3,500 website views. They’ve published nearly 30 unique and powerful stories of recovery, psychosis, schizophrenia, bipolar, depression, suicide and more and given numerous writers access to the MyCognitionPRO app – they also offer authors a bar of artisan chocolate from our sponsor Alexander Chocolate.
Minds Anonymous is the brainchild of 31 year old Louisa “Wizzi” Magnussen, who has herself successfully battled bipolar and other mental health conditions. The website allows people to share their mental health stories anonymously and read the stories of others. By giving people a voice it aims to prove that managing mental health is part of being human and end the shame surrounding mental health conditions.
Wizzi explained how she came up with the idea:
“I was interviewed for an article on bipolar and found the process of telling my story incredibly therapeutic. However, I was terrified by the prospect of publishing it under my name as there is still so much stigma surrounding mental health. I worried that I’d never be hired again.
“I was put on furlough and the name Minds Anonymous came to me. 24 hours later I launched the website to give others a chance to go through the process of telling their stories. By keeping it anonymous, each writer’s identity is protected so it’s a judgement free space where people can be honest without feeling ashamed.”