My name is Ton Mazzone, a visual storyteller who's always been drawn to stories that challenge our perceptions of reality. I’ve experienced severe anxiety symptoms, predominantly social anxiety, throughout my twenties that i’d mask with alcohol and drugs. I eventually sought help from my doctor who diagnosed me with anxiety and depression and prescribed me pills as a fix to this problem. I knew this wouldn’t get to the root of the issue and there had to be another fix.
About Us
In 2017, I turned a journal post of mine, which described my anxious feelings, into a video called ‘A Day in the Life of Anxiety’, and to my surprise, it went viral. 31 million views and thousands of messages, I realised that I was far from alone in my struggles. This sparked a fire inside me to understand the root cause of my anxiety and depression, and what I discovered was life changing.
Through extensive research and my own personal experiences, I came to the revelation that:
What happens to us during our childhood has a profound impact on our mental and physical health.
The correlation between adverse childhood experiences and adverse mental health is undeniable, and the scientific studies to support this are there in black and white.
It got me thinking:
How many others out there are receiving diagnosis for their mental health conditions, yet not receiving the guidance to truly understand and address the underlying issues? Despite this wealth of evidence pointing to the correlation between adverse childhood experiences and mental health struggle, why is there still a lack of recognition and understanding of this link within the medical community? Why isn't this the forefront of our mental health services?
I had so many questions with little to no answers.
With the help of leading experts in the field of trauma and mental health, and cinematic storytelling, I want to shed light on this critical issue through visual and audio content and explore the potential for healing. This is an urgent call to action so join me on this transformative journey as we delve into the depth of mental health and unravel its truth.
This is ‘Traumality’