For many, Christmas is the best, most joyous time of the year.

For others, it’s the opposite.

Living with a mental illness is tough. And it’s even harder when you’re expected to be all happy and jolly, loving life with your friends and family.

It’s hard to explain how an atmosphere of happiness can have a negative impact on people with a mental illness.

So, we spoke to a number of people with such difficulties, and invited them to share how this makes them feel.

Then, our graphic designer Emma Rose illustrated these descriptions, to help us all to understand, and be more empathetic to people with mental illness – especially at this time of year.