A north-east NHS psychologist has been praised for creating hundreds of “engaging” illustrations to help people improve their mental health during the pandemic.
Dr Emma Hepburn from Aberdeen decided to use her artwork to make psychology more accessible and easy to understand and to offer tips on how to stay positive.
The mum-of-two, also known as the Psychology Mum, has dedicated her “spare” time between working as an NHS clinical psychologist and holding a part-time lectureship at Aberdeen University to post therapeutic drawings on social media.
With more than 109,000 followers on Instagram, the illustrations have proven to be beneficial to young people of all ages.
The colourful images have also featured in a number of NHS Wellbeing campaigns, charity leaflets and school lessons to promote better understanding of mental health and how to improve it.
Speaking to the P&J, Dr Hepburn explained the importance of nurturing positive wellbeing on a daily basis.
She said: “Our work often tends to focus on treating mental health difficulties, but really, we should look after our mental health proactively at all times, not just when it goes wrong.
“Everybody should be able to access good quality and evidence-based psychology information beyond a clinic room and outside the hospital environment.
“So the motivation to start creating the illustrations was to try and get more people to use psychological techniques to look after their wellbeing proactively, by making it more accessible, engaging and memorable.”
Her illustrations are inspired by real-life stories and try to capture the experiences of different people.
Following the success of her Instagram account, Dr Hepburn collected all of her drawings in the e-book How to Stay Calm in a Global Pandemic, which was released in December last year and can be used for free by any non-profit organisation.
Last week, Dr Hepburn received a Points of Light award from PM Boris Johnson in recognition of the positive impact her support and advice has had on thousands of people across the country.