You've probably seen advertising saying, “Alone Together.” It’s a campaign launched at the start of the pandemic, originally focused on the importance of staying home and social distancing. Now that people feel more isolated, stressed and anxious, it has shifted to mental health.
The Ad Council brought on The JED Foundation, a charity that focuses on emotional health and preventing suicide.
“It is important that we realize first these feelings are normal, a normal human reaction, but also that we can do things to protect our mental health,” said John MacPhee, Executive Director and CEO of The JED Foundation.
The groups recommend what other mental health experts say to stay well. That includes staying calm and physically active, keeping meaningful connections, and eating and sleeping well.
The Alone Together website has a host of resources. If there's a silver lining in the pandemic, it has helped reduce the stigma of mental health because nearly everyone is experiencing these feelings.
“I think it’s hard not to be touched by it in so many different ways,” said Heidi Arthur, Chief Campaign Development Officer with the Ad Council.
“It’s just extraordinary how much care is out there to make sure mental health and wellness is front and center,” said MacPhee. “And I do think this gives us opportunities to cope together, to be resilient together, so we can lay the foundation to come out of this with post traumatic growth and a stronger sense of solidarity in community, because we've gone through this together.”
The ad council says nearly half of young adults across the U.S. report feeling depressed or anxious amid the pandemic. And two-thirds of people who saw the campaign took some sort of action.
Businesses and networks like MTV, Comedy Central, Snapchat and TikTok are now involved to help the message reach more people.