What is The Sunlight Project?
Stigma (noun): a mark of disgrace associated with a circumstance, quality, or person. The mental health community experiences a great deal of stigma as people tend to avoid talking about any issues in mental illness. The Sunlight Project was created to educate communities about mental health to eliminate the ignominy around the topic. Created by Kylah Kennedy, after her close friend was diagnosed with depression, Kylah saw more and more mental health issues around her. These issues were not helped by the lack of education as people are afraid to talk about the problem. Within recent years, teenage anxiety and depression have soared to an all-time high, with every one-in-five persons diagnosed with a mental disorder, and many that suffer or know someone closely who is, are uneducated in how to help themselves and others. This project strives to eliminate the stigma around mental health in teenagers so that more people are willing to seek help and help others who need it through education.