OUGD505: Product, Range and Distribution: Existing Mental Health Campaigns

Having researched into existing mental health awareness posters, most of them seem to be bright and all really aimed at 16+ year olds. The bright colours show the contrast of dark colours which can been seen as negative to make it stand out and easily seen and to make the topic feel more positive and open. The representation of mental health imagery of having too much on your mind makes sense however, it can look unappealing. The posters of stigma perfectly represents how people with mental ill health are treated. Others believe it is 'just a phase' and the bold colours and typeface makes you want to read more to find out what it is talking about. The NHS poster uses statistics to show that it is ok to experience mental ill health as they are not alone. The poster makes them not feel isolated or like they are the only ones feeling a certain way and that they don't have to be alone as it is 'normal'.

Most of the poster campaigns seem to be an online charity for mental health but some people may not have access or more information about mental health so it would be better to promote something where it requires people to talk to each other rather than being alone and searching online about mental ill health.

To my surprise, all the posters seem to be marketed in a way so that it will be aimed at people over the age of 16 as they are mostly too typographic, uses confusing/unknown imagery or just doesn't have an 'appealing' design for young 10-15 year olds to be interested in. 



Support from Royals
Prince William, Kate and Prince Harry have a website called 'Heads Together' where they want to help people with mental ill heath, of all ages and all walks of life to encourage others to speak about mental ill health and to stamp out stigmatisation surrounding it.

Prince William had also reached out to Lady Gaga about her own mental health since she wrote an open letter about her struggles with it and how they want to try and tackle it head on. It shows that people you don't expect or don't thing have mental ill health do, they just hide it well so that it seems like they don't. 

Heads Together also work with other charities which are:

• Best Beginnings

• CALM – The Campaign Against Living Miserably)

• Contact (a military mental health coalition)

• Mind

• Place2Be

• The Mix

• YoungMinds

• The Anna Freud Centre

October 10th is known as world mental health day where it is supposed to make people aware that it is still a problem and it is not going away.

There are charities that set up marathons to help raise money and awareness of mental health well-being and make people become aware of the already existing issues.