Today is World Mental Health Day – 9th October 2020. Mental Health is always a relevant issue, but with Covid and the turbulence it’s brought to our lives this year, talking about mental health awareness is more important than ever. It’s OK to not be OK.
Did you know:
- 1 in 4 people will experience a mental health problem of some kind each year in England
- 1 in 6 people report experiencing a common mental health problem (like anxiety and depression) in any given week in England
- 1 in 5 people have experienced suicidal thoughts
- 1 in 14 people regularly self-harm
- 1 in 15 people attempt suicide at least once in their lives
Let’s talk about Mental Health…
Nishtha Goel is an Anxiety Survivor, Sustainable Entrepreneur and Founder of Unnaaty. Actively raising awareness about mental health and the importance of talking about our own experiences, here is her story…
An Indian-native, Nishtha comes from a family of entrepreneurs. Growing up she was always fascinated with a 9-5 job life, which led her to take up finance for her undergraduate degree and study to become a Chartered Accountant. However, half way through the course, she realised that the world of numbers was too black and white for her to pursue it as a permanent career.
Early in 2012, she made an overnight decision to drop out of the course and start a handmade jewellery brand in India. As a self-taught jewellery artist, she went on to showcase her collection at the fashion week in 2017. It was the same year that she experienced a severe anxiety attack and found therapy in her craft and in walking barefoot on the grass. This experience brought her close to nature and also gave her a compassionate outlook towards life. It was also at this time when she made another overnight decision to move to the U.K. and study for a Master’s Degree in international Fashion Marketing, from a prestigious university in London.
The move to a new city gave Nishtha a new perspective towards life. After completing her studies in 2019, she founded Unnaaty – an eco-friendly online store that offers its customers the power to give back to the
community and the environment each time they shop.
Nishtha ensures that all of the Unnaaty products that are curated for the store are environmentally friendly and are either made by independent makers who are environmentally conscious or by social enterprises that employ people from the U.K. who have challenging physical or learning difficulties.
From the curation process to the after sales service, Nishtha continues to grow Unnaaty into a brand that delivers a great product, an equal opportunity for those who are otherwise disadvantaged and create a healthier planet for us all.