MENDOTA HEIGHTS, Minnesota — The holidays can be a gift but can also give us stress.
Ellie Mental Health's limited-edition wrapping paper reminds people to prioritize their mental health during the holidays.
"We wanted to get people having the conversation about the role mental health plays in the holidays," said Melissa Amponsah, the chief marketing officer at Ellie Mental Health.
Ellie is a brand of outpatient mental health clinics founded in Minnesota in 2015. After franchising in late 2021/early 2022, they now have a network of about 200 clinics open across the country. It was founded on the principle of destigmatizing mental health.
Ellie does monthly themes around mental health.
"We talked about things like the mental load of parenthood, which more typically falls on the role of the mother to carry the burden of the holidays and we talked about holiday traditions and things that you end up carrying forward that don't mean anything to you but you do it out of a feeling of obligation," Amponsah said. "Those things drain the joy that the holiday should actually have for us."
For their December theme, they chose to create holiday wrapping paper that includes coping skills. It's a subtle reminder for both the gift giver and receiver.
Phrases on the gift wrap include: Cut Yourself Some Slack; Plan Downtime; Get Some Fresh Air; It's Okay to Ask for Help; You Don't Have to Stay With Family; and Don't Skip Therapy.
"This time of year we do see a higher rate of cancellations for our therapy appointments. It's certainly not intended to be self-serving; it is intended to remind people that... you're helping your ability to cope with the things you're going through. Then when things get stressful, when you cut that out, you also cut out the things that are feeding into your ability to cope and to actually destress. So the one hour spent in therapy pays dividends for the hour you would get back from cutting it," Amponsah said.
The gift wrap can be found on Zazzle.com. As of Tuesday, to make it in time for Christmas, you need to choose the fastest printing and shipping option. All proceeds will be donated to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
Ultimately, it's about starting conversations around mental health during this time of the year.
Aponsah said, "Having people embrace the small and seemingly simple things that you can do that maintain the joy that the holidays are meant to bring."
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