This post is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice or mental health treatment. If you are in crisis, call or text 988 (in the U.S.) or contact your local emergency services.
Mental health is finally part of the conversation
Not long ago, saying "I am burned out" at work felt risky. Today, we talk openly about therapy, nervous systems, and our need for rest. That shift did not happen by accident. Every October 10, World Mental Health Day invites us to pause and take stock. As someone with a doctoral background in mental health, I think it helps to zoom out first, because to understand where we are, we need to know how we got here.
Where did this all begin?
For much of history, mental illness was explained through superstition, moral failure, or punishment, and people who struggled were hidden away or ignored. In the 19th century, reformers like Dorothea Dix pushed for more humane care in the United States. Then, in 1908, Clifford Beers, who had been hospitalized himself, published A Mind That Found Itself and helped launch the mental hygiene movement. Lived experience was already shaping the conversation.
What changed in the 20th century?
In 1948, the World Health Organization was founded, and its constitution defined health as more than the absence of disease, explicitly including mental well being. Medication and community based care began to replace long term institutionalization, and the first DSM arrived in 1952. Diagnosis has kept evolving ever since, a reminder that mental health science is shaped by the culture around it.
World Mental Health Day itself was first observed on October 10, 1992, an initiative of the World Federation for Mental Health, and it has grown into a global effort to reduce stigma.
What does awareness look like now?
Awareness has grown enormously. Conversations about anxiety, depression, burnout, trauma, and perinatal mental health are far more common than they once were. Policy has moved too. In the U.S., the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline launched in 2022, and mental health parity laws have worked to bring insurance coverage for mental health closer to that of physical health.
The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated much of this. The World Health Organization reported a 25 percent increase in the global prevalence of anxiety and depression in the first year of the pandemic. For many people, that was the moment mental health stopped being something that happened to other people.
But awareness is not the same as access, and access is not the same as support that fits your life. Many people still face cost barriers, long waitlists, and care that feels disconnected from the rest of their health. While plenty of people are not in crisis, they are quietly depleted, overwhelmed, or craving a different relationship with their inner world.
Where does the Inner Life Pillar fit in?
At VIRELLA, the Inner Life pillar is built around a simple idea: your mental and emotional well being is not separate from the rest of your health. It shapes how you sleep, eat, move, parent, work, and relate to others. And those things shape it right back.
Inner Life work is about more than managing symptoms. It is about building self awareness, learning to understand your stress responses, and creating practices and boundaries that actually support the life you are living. That might look like navigating a major transition, working through burnout, navigating old relational patterns, or simply wanting more clarity and steadiness. The Inner Life pillar is baked into the Virella Method and also the focus of the a la carte the Calibration Sessions.
What is mental health consulting?
This is a distinction I think is important to explain. Mental health consulting is an educational and supportive, goal oriented partnership. It is not therapy or medical care. Therapy focuses on diagnosing and treating mental health conditions. Instead, consulting focuses on understanding your patterns, building skills, and creating a personalized plan for your wellbeing, drawing on evidence based and integrative tools.
In my work, that can include:
Stress and burnout
Feeling “stuck” at work or in your personal life
Navigating relational and attachment patterns
Struggling to follow through and achieve your goals
Battling your inner voice and self worth
Major life transitions
Re-writing the inner narratives that are keeping you from being your ideal self
For many, consulting fills a gap. You might not need a clinical diagnosis, but you want informed, personalized guidance from someone who understands both the science and the realities of your life. And if along the way it becomes clear that therapy or medical support would help, a good consultant will tell you so and help you find it.
The bottom line
We have come a long way, from hiding people away to speaking openly about our mental health. That progress matters, and it was built by people who were willing to tell the truth about their experiences.
But the goal is not just to be aware that mental health matters. It is to have real tools and real support that make it part of how we live. This World Mental Health Day, I would encourage you to check in with yourself honestly. What is your inner life asking for right now?
That is ultimately the goal at VIRELLA: giving individuals the information and tools to participate more actively in their own wellness. If you are curious about mental health consulting, I would love to connect.
References
World Federation for Mental Health. History of World Mental Health Day.
World Health Organization. Constitution of the World Health Organization. 1948.
World Health Organization. COVID-19 pandemic triggers 25% increase in prevalence of anxiety and depression worldwide. March 2022.
Beers CW. A Mind That Found Itself. 1908.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.