CLIENT: CALM
PARTNER: Tulane University’s Early Psychosis Intervention Clinic (EPIC)
SERVICES: Brand development, Awareness campaigns, Digital marketing, Event Promotion, Podcast Production, Video, Social content, and Conference Support
Shifting the Narrative Around Early Psychosis in Louisian
Goal: Reduce stigma, drive early intervention, and improve outcomes for young people experiencing psychosis
Background
CALM is the public awareness and outreach arm of EPIC, a pioneering early psychosis treatment program at Tulane University. From its founding, we’ve worked closely with CALM to build and evolve its brand—ensuring that its voice remains rooted in science while amplifying lived experience.
Today, as CALM opens new satellite clinics across Louisiana, our partnership continues to grow. Together, we create multimedia campaigns that challenge stigma, center real stories, and help young people access evidence-based care faster
Campaign Highlight: Psychosis is Real. So is Recovery.
This awareness campaign set out to debunk common myths about psychosis and encourage early treatment, which has been shown to significantly improve outcomes.
Campaign Components:
- Digital and Transit Ads: Eye-catching visuals featuring client artwork directed users to an educational microsite.
- Interactive Quizzes: Two custom quizzes—one for young people experiencing symptoms, and one for concerned friends or family—designed with input from EPIC’s Mom’s Group.
- Podcast: Reality Check: Long-form conversations with clinicians, advocates, and those with lived experience, offering deeper insight into early psychosis and recovery.
Impact:
🚨 59% decrease in the average duration of untreated psychosis (DUP) in New Orleans
📉 From 15.5 months before the campaign to 6.3 months after
🔗 [Link to scholarly study] (Insert URL here)
Community Engagement: In My Mind
Each year, CALM hosts In My Mind—an annual fundraiser and awareness event celebrating the voices of people with lived experience of psychosis.
What We Did:
- Produced paid social campaigns spotlighting participating artists
- Created a digital gallery on CALM’s website to preserve and share their work
- Embedded a campaign video to boost reach and storytelling impact
🎥 Watch the video: YouTube Link — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Q7lENh3LzE
📈 14,739 video views in the first year
❤️ Increased trust, engagement, and donations from the community
Recognition & Influence
Our creative work and CALM’s impact haven’t gone unnoticed:
- CALM’s founders were invited to testify before Congress
- They received official citations from the New Orleans City Council
- Their work is informing mental health strategy in other U.S. states
Academic + Global Presence
We helped CALM present their work at the 2023 International Early Psychosis Association (IEPA) conference with a bold, QR code–driven poster that linked to an explainer video. Since then, CALM’s involvement at the conference has only grown.
📍 In 2025, we join CALM in Berlin for an interactive panel on creative communications in early psychosis care.
Advocacy in Action: Choose Your Delusion
In this bold, stigma-busting campaign, CALM tackled the shame and fear that prevent people from seeking treatment.
Key Elements:
- Produced a video based on a real employer referral story, in partnership with Fireside Media
- Launched billboards in new regions to promote CALM’s expanding clinic network
- Shared a clear call to action: Replace fear with facts
💬 This campaign uplifted CALM’s brand as a fearless advocate in a challenging time for mental health nationwide.
Conclusion
This work shows what’s possible when public health messaging combines clinical accuracy with creative storytelling. CALM’s boldness, authenticity, and commitment to community-centered care continue to inspire others—and we’re proud to help bring that story to life.
Your Journey Starts Here
So if you enjoyed my journey let us help start yours