"Toxic Support" Depression Awareness Illustrated Posters
Roles:
Author, illustrator, designer - Yuliya Osyka.
Editor/ Consultant - Anastasia Plokhikh, psychologist, gestalt therapist.
Author, illustrator, designer - Yuliya Osyka.
Editor/ Consultant - Anastasia Plokhikh, psychologist, gestalt therapist.
About the project
“Toxic Support” is a series of 12 illustrated posters dedicated to revealing the toxicity of phrases people say to someone with depression.
Most of us have heard some of these phrases or said them themselves.
These posters were created for 2 types of people:
1. People in depression, whose loved-ones use such toxic phrases.
2. The loved-ones of someone with depression. Often people either don't understand the nature of depression, or don't know what to say and how to show support, or, when with someone with depression, encounter strong emotions like sadness, irritation, fear, guilt and even anger and can't help it but use one of these phrases.
The posters are not meant to make anyone guilty, but rather to simply show the toxicity of particular phrases and, hopefully, help understand that such "support" is not health, moreover, it's not support at all. Depression is a complex and serious illness. To even try to understand it one needs time and information.
I reached out to Anxiety and Depression Association of America for their support and was very happy to hear they liked the idea and, moreover, offered me to write a blog post for their website. Find the post HERE
My hope is that these posters make visible that which is often overlooked, provide a glimpse into the reality of depression and help support those suffering from the illness.
"Toxic Support are made in 2 languages: English and Ukrainian.
“Toxic Support” is a series of 12 illustrated posters dedicated to revealing the toxicity of phrases people say to someone with depression.
Most of us have heard some of these phrases or said them themselves.
These posters were created for 2 types of people:
1. People in depression, whose loved-ones use such toxic phrases.
2. The loved-ones of someone with depression. Often people either don't understand the nature of depression, or don't know what to say and how to show support, or, when with someone with depression, encounter strong emotions like sadness, irritation, fear, guilt and even anger and can't help it but use one of these phrases.
The posters are not meant to make anyone guilty, but rather to simply show the toxicity of particular phrases and, hopefully, help understand that such "support" is not health, moreover, it's not support at all. Depression is a complex and serious illness. To even try to understand it one needs time and information.
I reached out to Anxiety and Depression Association of America for their support and was very happy to hear they liked the idea and, moreover, offered me to write a blog post for their website. Find the post HERE
My hope is that these posters make visible that which is often overlooked, provide a glimpse into the reality of depression and help support those suffering from the illness.
"Toxic Support are made in 2 languages: English and Ukrainian.
English Version
Ukrainian Version
