Next time you’re in a group, look around. One of every four people in the room will have a mental health issue at some point in their life. When you widen the circle to include those of us who love, work, or interact with people experiencing a mental health issue, it’s safe to say mental illness touches us all in one way or another. Despite its prevalence, having a mental health crisis is still a source of shame for nearly everyone. The World Health Organization (WHO) says two thirds of those with a mental illness will never seek help from a health professional. In Uganda,  Clear Yo Mind is a social enterprise working to change that narrative.

Clear Yo Mind was inspired during a time of darkness, self-stigma, anguish, and deep depression. Our Founders determined to create a society where nobody suffering from depression would ever have to suffer the same fate – failure to access professional help at the point in time they need it the most. Uganda has only 1 national mental health referral hospital (Butabika hospital) and approximately 34 psychiatrists for a population of 38 million people, yet the number of mental cases seems to be increasing due to alcohol and drug abuse.

Clear Yo Mind focuses on breaking the stigma surrounding mental health by raising awareness of mental health issues, with a focus on depression which is silently eating away at our society without regard to age, race, socioeconomic status or any other factors sometimes society pegs it to.