By Danielle Kutchel
Mitch Wallis knows what it’s like to struggle with mental ill-health.
After being diagnosed with acute anxiety and OCD at the age of nine, Mr Wallis said he interpreted the doctor’s words as meaning he was “broken”.
“I remember saying to mum, ‘I’m a bad person’,” he recalled.
As he got older, he strove to hide his diagnoses from the world.
It took him years to realise that “burying was the perfect breeding ground for mental illness to grow.”
Fast forward a few years and Mr Wallis finished a Bachelor of Commerce at a prestigious Sydney university, picked up an internship with Microsoft and moved to Seattle to take up a global role with the company at the age of just 25.
But even while flying around the world in business class, or presenting product launches on stage, Mr Wallis wasn’t coping – and eventually, he broke.
He checked into an outpatient facility in the US and, in a desperate bid to try and “figure it out”, applied to do a Masters of Clinical Psychology at Columbia University.
And in just the first hour of the class, he knew he’d found what he’d been put on earth to do.
A YouTube video by a total stranger helped set him on his current path. In the video, the stranger told of his mental health journey, and every word resonated with Mr Wallis.
When he arrived back home, he went straight to the beach, drew a heart on his arm and bared all in his own video.
“One person’s vulnerability gave me a reflection of my entire narrative, and I thought ‘hopefully, me wearing my heart on my sleeve can do this for one other person’,” he said.
That video went viral, beginning the Heart on My Sleeve charity and social movement for mental health.
Heart on My Sleeve encourages Generation Ys to support one another and tell their own stories of mental health challenges. It’s now one of the fastest growing mental health organisations in Australia.
In this time of upheaval when many are experiencing mental ill-health, some for the first time, Mr Wallis will be the special guest at a free online event with Casey Cardinia Libraries.
Casey Cardinia Libraries CEO Chris Buckingham said: ‘Public libraries have always played a role supporting mental health and well-being. We are delighted to be hosting Mitch Wallis for this special event. Everyone is welcome.’
This online event is for anyone who has experienced mental health challenges, knows someone who is suffering with mental health challenges or simply understand more about mental health.
Mr Wallis will tell his story and give practical tips on how to support a loved one or yourself through mental health challenges.
No booking is required; simply be on the Casey Cardinia Libraries Facebook page on Wednesday 28 October at 7.30pm.
For more information, visit https://www.cclc.vic.gov.au/celebrating-health-literacy-month/ or https://www.facebook.com/CaseyCardiniaLibraries/
Find out more about Mr Wallis at https://www.mitchwallis.com/
