Visible is more than a platform; it's a mission to amplify diverse voices, foster understanding, and make the invisible visible for all to see.

Our manifesto

Life quickly changes and things can become uncertain and overwhelming – especially if you’re feeling isolated and disconnected.

So it’s unsurprising this is the time when people are most likely to face mental health challenges.

Especially to us. Because we understand how it feels. We’re the Australian Youth Advocates for Mental Health, and every one of us has experienced mental health challenges of our own.

The truth is, it’s hard to talk about something you can’t see. It’s hard to find the words to explain something that’s invisible.

But we want to change that.

We want to help young people feel safe, supported and accepted for their mental health. How? By sharing real mental health stories and making the unseen seen.

Each person is unique and so has their story with mental ill-health and/or recovery. Through collaboration with talented artists, we have created an insightful collection of creative expressions that illuminate our real experiences facing mental health challenges.

We want to shine a light on the diversity of mental health experiences – so that our communities become more accepting, understanding, and caring, and young people can feel more comfortable talking about their invisible challenges.

We’re on a mission to make our stories, and our worlds visible – for all the world to see.

Who’s behind Visible?

We are the Australian Youth Advocates for Mental Health (AYAMH) , a group of young ambassadors who have personally navigated mental health challenges and are committed to breaking the stigma surrounding these experiences.

AYAMH’s journey began with the creation of Visible, focussing on sharing the unique stories of each advocate, bringing our stories to life with the help of talented artists.

As the project evolved a diverse new team of advocates came on board to take Visible to the next stage – shedding light on the shared experiences within communities. We wanted to emphasise that each unique story carries common threads that connect us all.

To bring these narratives to the forefront, we engaged in community-based activations that amplified the voices of often-overlooked groups of young people. By facilitating workshops that connected young individuals from these communities with artists, we aimed to create a space for listening, engagement, and understanding; delving into the collective feelings and messages of hope that contribute to a broader conversation about mental health.

Through Visible, we want to share our stories to help other young people feel safe, supported and accepted for their mental health. We want to reduce the stigma surrounding mental health, encourage others to open up about their own experiences and inspire a culture of acceptance, understanding and community care in our communities.

Visible was co-ordinated by headspace, funded by the Australian Government Department of Health, and guided by 9 National Mental Health organisations.