Frequently Asked Questions

One in five children is living with mental illness and 50% of all lifetime mental illness starts by age 14. Yet, there is still stigma around this national health crisis. On Our Sleeves® was

The On Our Sleeves Movement For Children’s Mental Health was created by Nationwide Children’s Hospital to make sure every U.S. community has access to free expert-created resources so everyone can understand and promote mental health for children.

Frequently Asked Questions

**What is the mission of On Our Sleeves?**

The mission of On Our Sleeves is to give free expert-created resources to all U.S. communities so everyone can understand and promote mental health for children.

**What does On Our Sleeves mean?**

On Our Sleeves is based on the premise that kids don’t wear their thoughts on their sleeves, so we don’t know what they are going through. On Our Sleeves takes a classic saying (“We don’t wear our heart on our sleeves”) and shows what a child or teen may be thinking and feeling through graphics to illustrate thoughts and feelings associated with mental health.

What do the icons mean?

If children could wear their thoughts on their sleeves, what would they look like? Our On Our Sleeves icons visualize what you may see if you could know what’s on a child’s mind. Each icon represents potential thoughts and feelings someone could have, using simple illustrations to symbolize complex emotions. Each person’s experiences will define what these icons mean to them.

**How will donations to On Our Sleeves be used?**

Gifts of any size make the On Our Sleeves mission possible – to give free expert-created resources to all U.S. communities so everyone can understand and promote mental health for children. Gifts fund educational content for parents and caregivers, curriculum for businesses, lesson plans for schools, kid-friendly videos and activities for schools and organizations and content for coaches. Please consider joining us by making a donation.

How do I get involved?

The On Our Sleeves Alliance works to amplify the cause of children’s mental health through the voices and actions of leading corporations, youth-serving organizations and health care organizations across the country. The Alliance works to empower the mental health and wellness of every child in the U.S. through fundraising and the distribution of expert-created resources necessary for breaking stigmas, educating families and advocates and teaching mental wellness skills. Find out how your organization can join us.