The concept of mental health is one which we’d previously prefer to tiptoe around, as opposed to having honest conversations about it. However, thanks to the efforts of people like Rita Auma, the aforementioned narrative is changing for the better.

Rita is a lawyer, author and co-founder of Heart to Heart Spaces, a mental health community that according to her provides safe spaces for people on their journey to healing.

“It is a client or patient based approach giving them spaces to share their stories about the illness, how they cope and have healed to those that have made it to the other side”, she explains. “We also provide emotional support for families or loved ones that have patients fighting with mental illness, mental health first aid, referrals to therapists and psychiatrists, counseling services and affordable therapy options.”

As someone who is no stranger to mental illness herself, Rita says her experiences while seeking help at Butabika Hospital inspired her to come up with the idea of what was soon to be Heart to Heart Spaces.

“When I was in Butabika, I noticed the people I was with were supportive, took care of each other, listened and gave advice. It was a whole support system that I noticed was not available after we got out because of the stigma around mental illness. When I got out I decided to do something about it.”

While her mental health is much better now than it was before, Rita insists she still has a number of mental illnesses. In fact she was forced to quit her day job at a city law firm back in March 2020. “I had to take a break because my mental health was going down the drain”, she recalls. She remains hopeful that she can resume her practice soon.

However with the help of regular therapy, supportive family & friends and a good treatment plan, she has managed to pull through. “I also do a lot of self motivation to remind myself that I am a lot more than my mental illnesses”, she adds.

The 28 year old believes there’s still a lot to be done to address the stigma that comes with mental illness, despite the fact that there’s a lot of work that’s been done in recent years to inform the masses.

“I think society is still in denial about mental health which has greatly built the stigma and negative language about it. However I am glad that there are a number of advocates speaking about it now. I see a lot of work done.”

“You are not your mental illness, you are a whole brilliant person outside it. Be kind to yourself even when it feels like you are taking 12 steps back. You are a warrior for fighting a battle not many understand and you are fighting on well”, Rita concludes.

Rita’s highly-acclaimed book “Dear Me” deeply chronicles her struggles with mental illness and how she managed to overcome said trials and tribulations. The book is on sale at Aristoc and Book Point stores. You can connect with Rita via her social media platforms below;

Twitter- auma_rita

Facebook- Rita Vigilante

Instagram – rih_auma

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