Weekly Update

College News

July 16, 2026

Welcome to our weekly update.

Featured Article: When Words Aren’t Enough: The Story Behind The Masks We Wear

The Masks We Wear grew out of my own experience of struggling to put complex emotions into words. Living with mental health challenges has taught me that feelings aren’t always neat or easy to explain, and sometimes language just isn’t accessible.

In therapy, I was once asked to write a letter. I couldn’t do it. What helped instead was finding my own way through creativity, using colour, texture, marks, and layering to express what I couldn’t say out loud. That experience stayed with me and became the heart of this course.

The course uses creative techniques to explore things many of us live with, such as masking, imposter syndrome, and the gap between how we appear in public and how we feel on the inside. Creating masks allows people to explore those layers gently, without pressure to explain or analyse. Masks can be built up, embellished with personal items, or layered in ways that feel meaningful to the person creating them.

Some learners have shared that they found the course particularly thought‑provoking. It gave them a chance to explore why they might wear a mask in everyday life, what it protects, what it hides, and what it allows them to get through. For many, noticing this in a creative way felt safer and more accessible than talking it through.

I often describe The Masks We Wear as journalling without words. It works on a different part of the brain and can be supportive when talking feels like too much. What really matters to me is that people often want to come back to the course. Even if you’ve done it before, you tend to discover something new. The themes stay the same, but what emerges is always evolving.

For me, this course is about creating a space where emotions can be explored with kindness, honesty, and creativity, especially when words aren’t enough.