Mental health issues are coming out of the closet, which should be for the good of all. John William Keedy channeled his anxiety disorder into a stunning series of images that convey what this disorder feels like to him, and others dealing with similar challenges have found the photographs relatable. Here’s an excerpt from ideastream’s profile of Keedy, followed by a link to the full article. If you recognize yourself in these images, and you live in the greater Cleveland area, give us a call.
At what point did you decide to show (your images) to the public?
It wasn’t originally something that I planned on showing to a lot of people. I was worried about what people were going to think about me and about my mental state.
But after showing them to a few people with mental disorders, and hearing them say that they identified with them, I thought it was important to make an effort to show them more.
There’s a stigma that goes with having a mental illness. It comes with this idea of weakness of will. Which is weird, because if somebody had a broken arm you’d never tell them to will their way out of it.
And because it’s not something that a lot of people talk about, it’s easy to feel that you’re alone, that you’re the only one who’s having these thoughts and feeling these feelings.