the anxiety filescreative direction, graphic design, & brand identity
OVERVIEW
A set of card decks incorporating routine, reflection, balance, and consistency into one stress relieving system. My user group was college students, young adults working freelance, and anyone else under a tight time schedule while also struggling with stress and anxiety.
This is why the cards have a time aspect to them, there is an option for a five minute, 10 minute, 30 minute, and 45+ minute in each time.
The decks themselves are categorized based on things that are proven to help mitigate anxiety for a lot of people, as methods for anxiety reliefs are not universal and are specific to the individual. This is why some of the cards have write-ins, so that it can be as tailored to each user’s needs as possible.
Spring 2025
Boulder, Colorado
DESIGN PROCESS
I was inspired by social commentary exhibits I saw abroad like the Shop of Basic Needs by Tero Puha (left), as well as various forms of graphic design that take a fun, lighthearted approach to an often serious topic.
Based on these precedents, I created a vision board to set the tone for my project….
Some graphics I hand sketched…
HOW IT WORKS
Each category is centered around topics known to help many people mitigate their anxiety. Pull a card from the appropriate deck whenever you’re feeling heightened anxiety.
Here’s a little overview of each deck…
Another big part of the process was designing the actual box to carry all the card decks…
WHY?
I created The Anxiety Files to offer a product to those who deal with anxiety, while approaching it in a light-hearted, optimistic way. The card system offers users a refreshing alternative to the countless apps, websites, journals, and even medications that have been created in hopes of aiding peoples anxiety.
While the main goal of my project is to help as many people as possible I also wanted to create a bit of a social commentary, similar to some of the exhibits I saw abroad in Scandinavia questioning societal expectations and the consequences of invalidating mental health. As women, we are constantly told in one way or another that what we’re doing is “not enough”, inevitably leading to the dooming feeling that you yourself are not enough as an individual and probably never will be with the way new expectations keep piling up on top of us, many of which aren’t even in our control. To me at least, this feels like a never-ending, metaphorical to-do list, and it is exhausting. We constantly see examples of this in society and through the media, so I decided it would be a perfect topic to tackle for my Capstone project, to apply to a wide range of people.
RESEARCH
Anxiety disorders are actually the most common mental health condition globally, with an estimated 301 million people worldwide who live with it everyday (World Health Organization, 2022). Such a high statistic is surprising given society’s painfully low urgency to address it; Anxiety is not talked about enough as a serious mental health issue.