YOU OKAY?: CONVERSATIONS ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH AND HEALING

WhiteFlag is a mental health movement designed to help people in need find immediate connection and support from people who have been there too. Our app is the beating heart of our movement because it’s the space where we can create an environment of acceptance, connection and support for everyone. Where it’s okay to not be okay. But we also want to have important conversations on a larger scale and invite people outside of our community to speak candidly about mental health, recovery and healing.

In our community, “U OK?” is a simple phrase that gives people permission to answer honestly, “No.” And quite often it’s the path to recognizing that there is a person on the other end of your chat who can stand to hear what you can’t bear to say. In that spirit of holding space, we’re launching You Okay?, a blog dedicated to conversations about mental health and healing. 

You Okay? is our earnest effort to normalize conversations about mental health, reduce stigma and share information about mental illness. Sometimes that will look like resources for those who want to help someone in need. At other times it may be clear and detailed information about what mental health challenges look, feel and sound like. We may feature stories of individual journeys, research or commentary from experts as well as people who just get it.

We’re not therapists. We don’t have any formal structure. Our expertise is in lived experience. We are people who have experienced trauma and live our own healing journeys each day. As a result of that, we understand that there is no one-size-fits-all solution to mental health and support. We aim to be just one of many resources for people who need support in many forms. That’s also why we’ll invite other voices to be a part of You Okay? and enrich the conversation. 

We trust in experts and established practices to guide people on their journeys. We also happen to believe that it’s a little bit easier to walk that path when there’s someone there beside you — especially if that person can say “I know exactly how you feel,” and mean it. If we can bring the spirit of a helping hand when you feel like you don’t deserve one to this space, we’ll have done what we set out to do. 

Welcome to You Okay? — it’s our most sincere hope that you’ll be glad we asked.