“When we can talk about our feelings, they become less overwhelming, less upsetting, and less scary. The people we trust with that important talk can help us know that we are not alone.”
~ Fred Rogers
Have you been tuning in to your emotions, or tuning them out? Mental Health Awareness Month starts one week from today, carving out thirty-one days to focus on wellness, presence, and courage to name what we feel.
Yesterday, we launched The Flip Side by Jason Walz—a young adult graphic novel that personifies depression and emphasizes the power of relationships to navigate our scariest feelings. Through comics, lessons, art, and conversations, this newsletter explores what it means to feel deeply, support one another, and create spaces where all emotions and all people belong. We hope these resources offer you meaningful tools and gentle encouragement toward wellness for Mental Health Awareness Month.
In a world where mainstream media often ignores or underrepresents the experiences of neurodivergent individuals and people with disabilities, Jason Walz is breaking new ground. As an Eisner Award-winning graphic novelist, Walz creates stories that not only center but also uplift the voices and lived experiences of those who are too often left out of the narrative. His work reminds us that every child deserves to see themselves as the hero of a story.
Walz’s journey as a storyteller began in Kentucky, where he grew up as an indoor kid who struggled with reading. Comics became his gateway to literacy, teaching him to love stories and eventually inspiring him to create his own. But his path hasn’t been without challenges. Walz has faced anxiety, OCD, and panic attacks—experiences that inform his deeply empathetic and authentic characters. “Every book I’ve written,” Walz shares, “reflects my own journey in some way.”
Theo’s best friend has died of cancer, and his grief is deep and raw. When the adults around him don’t seem to understand, his grief turns to depression, and Theo is forced to confront his sadness alone in an alternate reality where his city is literally flipped upside down.
Everyone in the world has disappeared except a monster that embodies his depression and a girl named Emma who has been stuck in the flipped world for a while and is fighting her own monster.
Together, as Theo and Emma face their depression and find friendship in each other, they work to find their way out of the flip side before their monsters consume them.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, about 12% of teens between ages 12-17 experience depression each year. For more information about navigating grief or depression, check out Young Minds, an organization committed to supporting the mental health of young people.
One of the most powerful ways to tend to our mental wellbeing is to acknowledge and accept our emotions instead of pushing them to the side. This exercise encourages you to nurture your feelings, make sense of them, and detect patterns or anomalies.
Gather a blank piece of paper or poster, markers, and a copy of this Core Emotions list. Identify 5 events from your day or week. Name the emotions you felt during these events. Use color, symbols, words, or other creative strategies to express those emotions on your map.
Afterwards, reflect on the following questions:
The countdown to summer break has begun, which means many educators may be experiencing thoughts of self-judgment. We know the messages our brains send us around this time—that we’re behind or not doing enough. Let’s shift the narrative and make space for celebration, reflection, and connection instead of burnout.
Join us for Celebrating Ourselves and Others, a free AmazeWorks webinar designed to help you end the school year feeling grounded, appreciated, and connected.
In this one-hour session, we’ll explore the power of our resilience, how to cultivate it, and everyday practices to celebrate yourself and your students. With so much uncertainty in the world, finding reasons to celebrate can feel harder than ever. But joy and belonging are worth investing in—especially now.
End the year on a high note with this AmazeWorks webinar.
Thank you for joining us to launch The Flip Side! This beautiful story reminds us that our emotions, no matter how complex, deserve to be seen, felt, and honored. We’re so grateful for this space to acknowledge and move through challenging emotions in community. We’re deeply grateful to everyone who made this event possible:
AmazeWorks is raising $30,000 to make up for recent policy changes impacting our funding. We’re asking for your help to do more than survive—we want to ensure AmazeWorks can thrive. If you believe in our work, now is the time to show up. We need to exist long after the crisis and the noise subside. Donate to AmazeWorks today!
AmazeWorks is having garage sale! Donations are accepted—email info@amazeworks.org to coordinate your office drop-off. Join us on the following dates at 1079 Shryer Ave W, Roseville, MN 55113:
In the event of rain, join us at the AmazeWorks office: 1380 Energy Lane, Suite 210 St. Paul, MN 55108.
TWO new Persona Doll Book Sets are on their way! For AAPI Heritage Month, we’re releasing book sets for Choua and Daniel. 🎉 Choua’s books explore being multilingual, losing a family member, and navigating sensitivity to loud noises. Daniel’s explore living with a single father, examining Japanese and European ancestry, and expressing big feelings. Click here to learn more about Choua and Daniel before their book sets come out!
We are excited to share that the 2025 BISG Industry Champion Award is being awarded to Lee Wind! This award honors someone whose work advances the publishing industry. AmazeWorks partners with Lee on the We Are Stronger Than Censorship campaign to offset the harms of book bans and challenges for authors and publishers. Click here to read the AmazeWorks Discussion Guides on AMAZE-ing banned books. Congratulations, Lee!
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