UK Model & Actress Speaks Up on Issues of Mental Health
Instagram is an amazing place. There are a ton of beautiful people with stories they are willing to share with the world. In scrolling through our IG feed, the team came across @befreehannah's account, a 20 year old young woman from the UK who describes herself as "an elf from Middle Earth."
Her feed is full of inspiration: yummy food, beautiful braided hair designs, cute clothes... we sent her a message welcoming her to the IANDI Family and the response we received was a heartfelt thanks and a bit about her story.
She told us that she is a professional model and actress, and that she travels to schools to speak about her struggles with eating disorders and self injury. We knew right away that Hannah was shining a bright light on mental health awareness, and we wanted to know more about this beautiful young woman from the UK and what had inspired her to share her story with others. This time, it was our chance to shine a bright light on Hannah.
IANDI: Where are you from?
HANNAH: St. Albans, in the UK
IANDI: What do you like to do for fun?
HANNAH: I'm a model and an actress. Being on stage is what makes me feel alive. I also love going on adventures, wandering about between trees or dragging my feet through the sand along the beach. I've always loved baking too, I do a bit of it every now and then. And of course I always need to be the one to have the first taste! Haha
IANDI: Name some of your favorite, most beautiful songs in the world.
HANNAH: Brand New Day - Joshua Radin
This song just gives me hope every time I need some. Every day brings new chances, new choices and another adventure. Every day is a chance to change your life around. Always hang on to hope because tomorrow is a brand new day.
Hunstanton Pier - Deaf Havana
This song just makes me feel so alive again. No one is alone, everyone struggles. But in your heart and soul there is always a teeny tiny flicker of hope. We all feel like hell sometimes. But it will be okay. Maybe not today, maybe not even in a year. But it will.
IANDI: Tell us a little bit about your journey. What inspired you to start speaking up about mental illness?
HANNAH: When I was eight years old I got diagnosed with depression. I was bullied severely at school and neglected at home because my brother claimed all the attention. I always blamed myself for everything. When I was 12 things got even worse. The bullying turned from words to actions. I was beaten up nearly every day, I was doing other people's homework. At home the situation hadn't improved either. I started self harming at this age. Because if other people could hurt me then why shouldn't I hurt myself? I finally wanted to feel something else than the agony inside. I couldn't tell anyone. I started hearing voices at 14, they told me that I wasn't allowed to eat. And me? I listened. My eating disorder very nearly killed me, I was only days away from dying. However, I decided to fight.
I'm twenty now and I still struggle with my mental health a lot. I've been raped and hurt more times than I can count but I'm not giving up. Not ever. I contacted the British eating disorder charity Beat with an article I wrote named "What NOT to Say to Someone with an Eating Disorder." After this got published and fairly popular on their blog, I started contacting schools. Since then I've spoken out about eating disorders and depression many times. It has helped me in my own recovery as well, and people have come up to me many times telling me that I have helped them. One girl came up to me after I spoke at her school, and in tears thanked me because she had stopped eating but wanted to get better. We're still in contact and she's doing amazingly!
IANDI: What does mental illness mean to you?
HANNAH: There is far too much taboo around mental illness. It's very misunderstood. Mental illness is just as bad as physical illness. Anorexia is the leading cause of death in woman aged 15-22! Depression isn't "just sad" and OCD isn't a cute quirk. Anxiety isn't just being shy. People who actually suffer from mental health issues would do anything to want to be free from them. Because that's one of the most dangerous things about mental illnesses: it becomes so much part of you that you fear letting it go.
IANDI: Why do you think mental illness is so stigmatised?
HANNAH: People fear what they don't understand. People don't understand mental illness. People who suffer don't even understand it. Mental illness is like a grey matter that no one can make sense off. And it IS scary. But instead of supporting them, people run away because they fear it so much. They fear being dragged into it.
IANDI: Why am I excited about being part of this family?
HANNAH: I think IANDI is doing something amazing about breaking the stigma, speaking out is something that needs to happen and I think that this will help so many people, IANDI is not only breaking the stigma, it's changing how people see mental illness. And that makes me proud of being part of this family!
Connect with Hannah, our #mentalhealthwarrior, on Instagram here
