Betty Irabor goes on Tour to Destigmatize Depression, Encouraging People to Speak Up

Betty Irabor, Editor In chief and CEO of Nigeria’s leading lifestyle Magazine Genevive Magazine is set to change the narrative of mental health and depression across Africa with her recently launched Network. The Beautiful Mind Network aims to destigmatize depression and encourage individuals to speak up, drawing from her story of going through clinical depression for 7 years and surviving. Across Africa, mental health is stigmatized, people are mocked, laughed at or not taken seriously if they speak up about their feelings. While the narrative has been encouraging people to speak up, their support system have not been sensitized on how to offer support to them. These sessions hope to provide the much-needed sensitization for sufferers and their support system.

The sessions kicked off with Uyo last weekend and will hold across 5 other locations spread over a time frame of 3 months. These sessions seek to hold conversations on key issues like : Turning pain into purpose, Finding strength in vulnerability, Discovering you, Overcoming fear and working through depression, Finding courage and Hope and most importantly empathy and openness about our mental being.

Speaking in Uyo, Betty Irabor challenged the guests present to be attentive and show care to people around them. ‘ We keep urging people to speak up but who are they speaking to? Most of us are not welcoming, we feel they are coming to ask for money or dump on us. We have lost that thing that binds us together and until we find it we will be unable to help our friends and family members going through depression and hopefully save them before years of misery and maybe suicide.

Other cities to participate in the sessions are Warri June 2nd, Lagos June 8th, Port Harcourt June 15th, Abuja June 22nd, Kano June 30th and Accra July 27th. The tour will also go across some corporate organizations spreading the message of Hope. Interested participants can email [email protected] or call +2347032244067 for enquiries.

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