10/10/2026
WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY 2026
Lived Experiences Heard: Real Voices, Real Change
There is something deeply meaningful to me about this year’s World Mental Health Day theme, because it speaks to the very heart of why I am a Clinical Psychologist.
Ukuva. Ukuviwa. Uviwe. Words from my mother tongue, isiXhosa, that carry such profound meaning. To be heard, to be felt and to be accepted. For me, this is the essence of empathy, something I believe every human being deserves.
In the communities we serve, here in East London, across the Eastern Cape and throughout South Africa, people carry experiences that many of us may never fully understand. Grief, trauma, mental illness, poverty and the everyday struggles of life. Too often, these experiences are met with silence, judgment or misunderstanding.
*Yet behind every lived experience is a human being whose voice matters*.
As a Clinical Psychologist, I am reminded that people do not always come to us expecting answers. Sometimes, they simply need someone to listen, to understand their pain and to see them beyond their circumstances or diagnosis.
*That, to me, is the heart of Ukuviwa/To be heard.*
When we speak of lived experiences heard, we must ask whether people also feel understood, respected and accepted. Because listening without understanding can leave people feeling just as alone, and hearing their stories without allowing those stories to inform change is simply not enough.
May we continue building families, communities and mental health services where people feel safe to share their struggles and where their voices are valued.
*May we never become so focused on treating mental illness that we forget to see, hear and understand the person living with it.*
Olwethu Mncono
Clinical Psychologist
