Every year on October 10, people across the globe join with the World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH), the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations (UN), and other global organizations to celebrate World Mental Health Day. And tomorrow’s the day!

This year, the theme is “Our Minds. Our Rights.” The goal is to drive home that mental health is a universal human right. 

Our minds, our rights

As the WHO points out on their World Mental Health Day webpage for 2023, one in eight people across the globe lives with a mental health condition. 

These conditions can come from a number of causes. Sometimes, inherited genes or chemical imbalances in the brain contribute to mental illness. But other times, the person’s dealing with a mental health challenge because of a traumatic experience in their past. Understanding what’s behind the condition can help that person pursue the right treatment for them — something that’s their basic human right. 

If you’re living with a mental health challenge because of a difficult past experience, expressing what you’re feeling might help. And through this year’s World Mental Health Day, you have the chance to do just that. 

As part of the 2023 celebration, the WFMH is hosting “Right to Express” and “Express Through Art” initiatives. 

If you want to share your story or say something out loud, this is your chance. The WFMH will be choosing select messages to share and inspire others to speak up for themselves as they move toward a mentally healthier future. 

And you don’t have to go through that website, either. You can use tomorrow as a motivator to get together with a friend and talk in-depth about how you’re feeling. You could seize the opportunity to get started with a therapist, or to open up more to the therapist you’ve already been seeing.

Remember, your mental health is your right as a human being. As we all celebrate tomorrow, take this opportunity for yourself to see what you need to feel more mentally well. 

And if you’re looking for more ways to get involved with other people, the WFMH is also maintaining a running list of celebrations across the world. 

Celebrating last year’s successes

If you want some inspiration to lean into World Mental Health Day 2023, we can look at last year. 2022’s theme focused on making mental health and wellbeing for all a global priority. Thanks to more than 50 events in 2022 countries, over 500 volunteers, and digital efforts, the celebration reached more than 100,000 people. 

In other words, World Mental Health Day can be as personal as you want it to be. But if you’re looking to join a global community as they focus on mental wellbeing, tomorrow’s a great day to tap into what’s already going on. You can look for celebrations in your area or online groups to join. 

And we’ll be right there beside you! Happy World Mental Health Day from our team at Doughp! We’re not just here to sling delicious cookie dough — we also want to smash mental health and addiction stigmas in the process.