Don’t mind her. Actress and advocate Mädchen Amick is on a mission to normalize and destigmatize mental health challenges one mind at a time.

“We kind of wanted to come up with something that was playful, but still was really embracing minds, so we gave it a really sassy name of ‘Don’t mind me — changing the world, don’t mind me — I’m gonna tell my story,” said Amick.

Amick and her family are doing both, starting the Don’t MIND Me Foundation following a devastating diagnosis in their family.

“It’s inspired by my son who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder about 10 years ago,” said Amick. “It was something that hit our family out of nowhere. We hadn’t experienced anything like this before and when our son was going through psychosis and mani, man, it just took the rug out from underneath us.”

Unfortunately, their story of a mental health crisis is more common than many think.

“You never think that your loved one is going to go through a crisis, then it happens and it happens much more than you think. It happens to 1 in 4 people in a lifetime,” said Mina Tobias, Co-Founder of the Don’t Mind Me Foundation.

Through the foundation’s pillars of advocacy, access, and action, they’re taking what they’ve learned in their experience and creating a pathway of hope for other families. First, by addressing discrimination and stigma around mental health head on.

“We’re all about spreading the word and just talking candidly about our experience because there’s this fear about the stigma around mental illness,” said Tobias. “We want to try and end the stigma around it, so that there’s not that first wall of challenges that people have to face when they’re trying to get treatment.”

“It has been such a struggle for us as a family to find those resources and get a proper diagnosis and so we want to reach back and help someone else coming through that might need guidance,” said Amick.

All with a goal of changing minds and saving lives.

“It’s made us very aware that you need to not only take care of your body, but you really, really have to pay attention to your mind,” said Amick.

On Saturday, Jan. 14 and Sunday, Jan. 15, the Don’t MIND Me Foundation will host its 2nd Annual Mental Health Fundraiser at the Tamarisk Country Club in Rancho Mirage. They will present their first scholarship of $12,000 to the Mental Health Center of San Diego to provide immediate crisis care for those in need.

To donate or participate in the event, visit dontmindme.org.

“Don’t MIND Me” Foundation To Host 2nd Annual Mental Health Fundraiser