Renson Mwakandana
Many knew her as a Clinical Psychologist working with Icyizere Psychotherapeutic Center, but didn’t know she is also an artist who paints and crafts beautiful artworks.
On June 3, Dr Cindi Cassady kicked off an art exhibition titled “Living with Hope” which features 38 of her artworks.
According to Cassady, some of the artworks on display deal with mental health, while others depict hope and the beauty of various Rwandan locations.
The clinical psychologist, who is from the United States, has been living in Rwanda for the past eight years. She noted some young people have committed suicide and are depressed in the last two years and realized the Rwandan society needs to openly discuss depression.
The psychologist feels that suicide is absolutely preventable in the majority of circumstances, but she recognizes that it is stigmatized in Rwandan society, and people are reluctant to discuss it for a variety of reasons.
However, she noted a few months before the Covid-19 epidemic that young people were chatting and posting about depression and other mental issues on social media.
She believes that because young people are more comfortable writing, uploading and tweeting about depression than their parents, the situation will change.
“I really see youth as the catalysts for changing the course of mental health in the country,” she said according to an excerpt from the News Times.
Cassady understands that as the country’s main psychiatric hospital, Caraes Ndera must connect and collaborate with young people to find a means to talk about what’s going on in their lives and to help their families understand what depression is all about.
She commented on the exhibition’s theme, “Living with Hope,” saying, “When people have mental issues, sometimes they lose hope. If you give up on hope, you are at risk of not surviving. That’s what suicide is; it’s giving up, not having hope…We need to give each other hope. Things usually get better if you get hope”.
Cassady also stated that money gained from the artwork sales will go toward a program aimed at educating families about depression and suicide, with a focus on youth.
