This article is an instalment of MUSE Magazine’s Mental Health Theme week, taking place from October 25th to October 30th, 2021.

Trigger Warning: This article contains discussions of mental health, which may be a trigger for some readers. 

Disclaimer: The author wants to acknowledge and make it known that these are their personal experiences. The author would like to recognize that other people have other experiences and that no two people are the same.

 This piece is a way to show others that they are not alone when it comes to their struggles with mental health. Battling mental health issues is extremely common, yet people still feel ashamed when it comes to opening up about their experiences. The way a person’s mental health struggles manifest and express themselves is something they shouldn’t feel embarrassed by. This piece was inspired by how stress manifests in my body, mainly as pressure around my upper face and brain. This is demonstrated through the contrasting red and blue colours, which were inspired by thermal imaging where the stress is acting as heat, as well as Plutchik’s wheel of emotions. The wheel is a visual representation of the relationships between colours and emotions. The colours red and orange represent heat, anger, annoyance, anticipation, and anxiety, while the blue represents calm and collected feelings.

HEADER IMAGE SOURCE: ARMITA DABIR