NEW BEDFORD — Local author and illustrator Kara Bean has been mentoring high school students for more than a decade and has seen firsthand the power of art to help bring sensitive issues to the surface. She is currently writing a new graphic novel of her own that guides adolescents and teens through mental health issues.
Here I am, I am Me: An Illustrated Guide to Mental Health is aimed at young people and aims to demystify the often confusing and scary subject of mental health.
In this book, Bean uses comic and figurative language to discuss topics related to mental health, including anxiety, stress, and more from the brain and mind. These books also focus on serious issues such as drug use, addiction, and suicide.
The final chapter is about asking for help.
“As an art teacher, one thing I felt needed more education and was concerned about was the mental health of my students,” the New Bedford native said. He is also the author of “Draw 500 Funny Faces and features.”
more:These celebrities visited the New Bedford area. Here’s why:
“They would choose me as their person, or they would share things with me, and I thought, ‘I don’t know enough about this.’ So, training on mental health. Whenever there was a workshop held, I always attended.
Bean said these workshops made her realize the power of visual storytelling.
Taking on the challenge of creating illustrations with the theme of mental health
“As a cartoonist, I was drawing all the notes, and people really seemed to enjoy it. I shared some of the notes online, and it went viral. ” she added. “Eventually, someone challenged me to create a comic that spoke directly to children, and this book was born.”
“Here I am, I am Me” took Bean about six years to create, as it required extensive research and collaboration. She even quit her teaching position in Lexington to focus on completing this book. She is the New Bedford Economic Development Council’s 2023 recipient of the NB100. Bean, a Kickstarter grant program to support entrepreneurs, collaborated with the New She Bedford Creative and Co-Creative Center.
From January to March 2024, she served as Artist in Residence at New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park.
“I think we all have responsive brains and nervous systems. We could all learn more about that,” she said.
“Understanding that your body produces too much cortisol when you’re stressed and there are things you can do to relax can help you make better choices.”
This book is useful not only for adults but also for all age groups
So far, the book has been well-received by both young readers and adults, Bean said. For example, she said, the 11-year-old who finished her book in one sitting really enjoyed the experience and reiterated her love for the book during pop-up reading.
more:‘Salem to the south coast’: New crystal shop opens at Dartmouth Mall
“I believe anyone can read this book and learn about their bodies and their brains,” Bean said.
She also hopes the book will be used in schools as part of their mental health curriculum, or at least as something accessible to students who need help.
“Knowing more is empowering. It doesn’t hurt you. It only makes you stronger,” she said.
“I think the more we understand, to dig a little deeper and understand ourselves and the people we live with, the more compassion we can have for each other.”
Here I am, I am Me: An Illustrated Guide to Mental Health is available for purchase on Amazon.
Standard-Times staff writer Seth Chitwood can be reached at schitwood@st.com. Follow him on Twitter:@ChitwoodReports. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to the Standard Times today.
