Mary O’Neill

5. Four Pandoras
6. Projectile
7. Self Portrait 1 (Skull Woman)
8. Tongue
9. Dream Gurlz
10. Self Portrait 2

I have struggled with depression, anxiety and PTSD for years due to childhood trauma and bereavement. As a young person I was emotionally frozen and didn’t fully understand what I was going through, I felt different from my peers. Consciously and unconsciously I hid the grief and trauma as I knew on some level it would be incredibly painful to face and also out of shame and fear of being rejected by others. There wasn’t the same support and understanding of mental health issues then as there is now. At times I felt completely abandoned, invisible and I didn’t even want to exist anymore. The experience has impacted most areas of my life and like many people do, I tried to put on a brave face and keep going. The images I have created represent different aspects of my trauma, grief, my identity and stigma. Going to therapy and creatively exploring my experience has been a good way to channel and process it all, to help me move forward at my own pace and to accept myself as I am.