Festival aiming to combat mental health stigma happening at Timbre+ on Sept. 28, 2019

Talking about mental health issues can be a challenge because of the stigma.

However, an upcoming festival, Beyond the Label, is seeking to address mental health stigma surrounding the topic by helping Singaporeans better understand the matter, and why it’s important to show support for those recovering from such conditions.

Happening on Sept. 28 at Timbre+, from 12pm to 10pm, Beyond the Label Fest will feature making your own essential oil, pottery, mindfulness and yoga workshops, as well as an Escape Room with the theme of a student navigating his life while being in recovery from depression and anxiety, among other things.

Here are some event highlights.

Escape Room

Objective: To de-stigmatise mental health conditions among youths and young adults.

Organised by: The Youth Alliance.

What can you expect: Being placed in the shoes of a 22-year-old student having depression and anxiety, and helping him to navigate his way at work and school.

Called the Escape Room, this is an immersive experience for participants as they take the perspective of a 22-year-old student having depression and anxiety.

Organised by the Youth Alliance, a mental health committee co-chaired by Campus PSY Limited and TOUCH Community Services, that seeks to promote awareness of mental health conditions amongst youth in Singapore, by encouraging them to seek help early and also provide support to their peers.

As such, the purpose is to de-stigmatise the issue of mental health among youths and young adults, as well as educate participants on the early identification of signs and symptoms of mental health conditions.

This allows better understanding of mental health conditions and the importance of seeking for help.

Participants will have to navigate through three settings, beginning with:

1. the student’s workplace where he interns at, in which he has problems meeting project deadlines and adjusting to the work environment,
2. his own bedroom, which showcases his struggle with insomnia and his laptop’s search history of anxiety and depression,
3. and finally, a project room in school, where he is able to open up to his friends.

Five to six participants are allowed in the room at each time, with a limit of 20 to 30 minutes to complete the room.

Pottery workshop

Objective: To allow participants an avenue to channel their negative emotions.

Organised by: Center Pottery.

What you can expect: A unique pottery workshop to help a person with their mental health.

Here, the classes will be run by Center Pottery, a social enterprise that conducts special clay classes for the elderly, persons with mental health conditions and persons with disabilities.

What’s more, for Mindful Pottery classes in particular, the social enterprise has worked with two prominent psychologists to devise the curriculum for both the general public, as well as mental health patients.

The classes will therefore be specifically aimed at providing an avenue for people looking to release their stress, anxiety, or any other negative emotions that they might be experiencing in their daily lives.

It also aims to teach participants how to better understand themselves and manage their negative emotions better through the process of pottery.

As such, a total of two Pottery workshops will be held during the event, with the first session from 1.30pm to 3.30pm and the second session from 5pm to 7pm.

A maximum of 20 people can sign up for each session.

Workshops on making your own essential oil

Objective: Introducing aromatherapy and essential oil to improve your mental health and well-being.

Organised by: aromamaymay

What you can expect: Learning the use of essential oils in meditation and aromatherapy, and making your very own type of oil.

Organised by aromamaymay, a team of health enthusiasts who advocate the use of natural essences for health and wellness, this class will introduce participants to the basics of essential oils and aromatherapy, and their uses in meditation and daily life.

They will be conducted by Janice Wong, a senior Occupational Therapist who has worked at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) for four years, with a specialisation in mood disorders, and a keen interest in the use of natural remedies to optimise overall health and wellness.

Apart from learning the use of essential oils in aromatherapy and sensory meditation, participants will also get the chance to make their very own type of oils.

Three classes will be held, from 12pm to 1.15pm, 3.30pm to 4.45pm and 7.30pm to 8.45pm respectively, with a maximum of 20 people allowed for each class.

Workshops for mindfulness and yoga

Objective: Teaching participants how to cope with difficult emotions, and developing one’s emotional resiliency.

Organised by: Mindful Insights for mindfulness, and The Breathe Movement for yoga.

What you can expect: Learning how to be aware of your own emotions, and practising yoga.

Visitors at the festival will also have the chance to sign up for classes on mindfulness and yoga.

The mindfulness class will aim to teach participants on how to cope with difficult emotions and letting go of judgements, and will be run by Mindful Insights, a social enterprise that aims to make mindfulness training accessible to as many people as possible.

Meanwhile, the yoga class will focus on cultivating self-awareness and emotional resiliency.

It will be run by The Breathe Movement, a social organisation that seeks to increase the emotional and mental resiliency of individuals through the practice and philosophies of yoga.

Here are their details:

Mindfulness Introductory workshop:

• First session: 12pm – 1.30pm
• Second Session: 3.30pm -5.00pm
• Third Session: 6.30pm – 8.00pm

Yoga:

• First session: 2pm – 3pm
• Second Session: 5pm – 7pm
• Third Session: 8pm to 9pm

Where to sign up

Note that for the pottery, make your own essential oils, mindfulness and yoga workshops, you will need to donate S$15 via giving.sg to confirm your registration.

Here’s how you can do so:

Step 1: Register for workshops at the link here.

Step 2: Make your token donation of $15 as all your contributions will go towards supporting various agencies under the President’s Challenge.

Apart from these events, there are many more things to eat, drink, and buy too.

Come and check this festival out.

Event details

Date: Sept. 28, 2019

Time: 12pm-10pm

Venue: Timbre+

Admission: Free

For more information, you can check out Beyond the Label Here and here.

Top image from National Council of Social Service

The writer of this sponsored article hopes that people will one day be able to talk about mental health conditions like we talk about diabetes -- without fear