In partnership with over 150 breweries in 5 countries across the globe, Hope For The Day’s THINGS WE DON’T SAY: CRAFT BEER FOR MENTAL HEALTH project sets the stage for conversations about mental health in a place these conversations don’t find themselves often enough.

Named after Hope For The Day’s flagship mental health education curriculum, THINGS WE DON’T SAY: Craft Beer For Mental Health is a 6% IPA being released in May 2021. While this name means a lot to Hope For The Day specifically, it also has additional roots in the Craft Beer world.

“Things We Don’t Say” New England Double IPA was released in 2019 by Matt Smith, owner of Wandering Soul Beer in Beverly, MA. After the stillbirth of his daughter, he created this IPA to highlight the impact on his own mental health. Both he and his wife experienced firsthand how painful the trauma of loss could be, but also realized the social push to keep silent about it so as not to make anyone uncomfortable, was just as painful.

We are proud to share a name with Wandering Soul, and hope to continue to help others talk about “Things We Don’t Say” in their own communities.

This project is an invitation to breweries all over the world to use their platforms to stand up for those who suffer in silence with their mental health, be it with anxiety, depression, or other mental illness. 

While these types of conversations are crucial, having them within the alcohol industry can raise a few eyebrows.

Questions are often raised about the relationship between beer and mental health - how can the two come together when so many struggle with addiction and abuse? Do mental health conversations have a place in breweries? 

YES. When you think a conversation about mental health doesn’t have a place in an industry, situation, moment, etc. that is where those conversations are needed most. Hope For The Day truly believes that we need to meet people where they are, and not just where we expect them to be. For some, that means we need to meet them at the bar they visit when they’ve had a bad day and don’t know where else to turn for comfort. 

When it comes to mental health issues being paired with alcohol, we do not have all the answers to every question that arises. And that is OK. Unfortunately, we cannot single handedly end substance abuse. What we can aim for is to open these lines of communication to a group that may not otherwise be reachable. 

In true “meet you where you are” fashion, we are taking a seat at the table, and handing the mic over directly to those voices and stories that we have not yet been able to hear. In the pursuit to destigmatize mental health, we must acknowledge that ALL stories about mental health challenges are valid and deserving of recognition. Alcohol plays a part in many people’s stories, and to simply ignore that side of one’s struggle would be to ignore part of who they are. 

Can this topic be awkward and uncomfortable? Absolutely. Do we always know exactly what to say or how to perfectly navigate the relationship between alcohol and mental health? Absolutely not. That’s the whole point - we want to get people uncomfortable so we can get more comfortable talking about “THE THINGS WE DON’T SAY”! 

The thing is, alcohol abuse in relation to mental health struggles will not be solved by avoiding these conversations in the alcohol industry, but it can potentially save someone’s life if we start them.

If someone is sitting at a bar alone drinking because they have nowhere else to turn, we need to know where to turn when we know that someone needs a line to reach out to ASAP. The beer label of THINGS WE DON’T SAY: CRAFT BEER FOR MENTAL HEALTH includes a list of general mental health and substance abuse resources, as well as a QR code that brings you to Hope For The Day’s Resource Compass, hftd.org/find-help, where US residents can put in their zip code to find local resources that fit their specific needs. Our beer international labels point consumers to vetted resources local to their area. 

Someone who never knew they needed help may find themselves exactly where they need to be by simply starting mental health conversations where they aren’t always found. 

To learn more about the THINGS WE DON’T SAY: CRAFT BEER FOR MENTAL HEALTH project, or to get involved as a brewery, visit https://www.hftd.org/thingswedontsayipa.  By talking about the things we don’t say, we can make them the things we do say.

If you or a loved one are going through a mental health challenge or would like more information on available resources in your community, please visit Hope For The Day’s Resource Compass.