Today we’d like to introduce you to Mykaylah Gray.
Mykaylah, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
My name is Mykaylah. I’m 26 years old from Worcester, Massachusetts. I started I Am Sufficient based off of my own personal testimony and many others. I love to write poetry and about a year ago, I wrote a poem about how I went from being Suicidal to Sufficient, not knowing that the phrase itself would help so many people dealing and struggling with their mental health. In the past, growing up, I’ve dealt with suicidal thoughts, anxiety and depression and I finally came to a place in my life where I found out that I was worthy and that life is not easy but with God, all things are possible. I reached a breaking point and started attending a church in Lawrenceville called All Nations Christian Fellowship, and was connected to my now Spiritual Father Dr. Moses Muwkiza.
My eyes were open to see why I was struggling with my mental health and it was affecting my physical health as well. I decided I wanted to give hope to the hopeless and be the person that I needed when I wanted to give up, so I started mental health awareness and suicide prevention line with words that are the embodiment of an overcomer. Whether you are suicidal to sufficient, rejected to accepted, worthless to worthy or a mess to a messenger, you are sufficient and you are more than enough. I received my first order of shirts in the in the beginning of March 2020, not expecting Covid to slowly push back my plans… I was very discouraged and just wanted to wait a couple of months until things settled down and businesses started opening back up but little did I know Covid actually gave me the perfect opportunity to step in and start giving hope. Depression, anxiety and suicide rates started increasing and I started sharing my testimony, encouraging words and stories from supporters on Instagram, while posting pictures of people in my shirts and my business took off from there.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
So far the business has been smooth, the only struggle has been the support from people who are ashamed to acknowledge that they have a mental illness or just don’t want people to know that they struggle with their mental health. Suicide is still a very taboo and stigmatized subject, and a lot of people are very hesitant to discuss it let alone wear it on a shirt. Since I have been wearing my shirts, it has opened up a lot of different conversations with a lot of unknown faces and has helped a lot of people know that they are not alone and that there is hope.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the I Am Sufficient story. Tell us more about the business.
I am sufficient is a testimonial driven, faith-based movement and brand, bringing more awareness to mental health and suicide prevention through apparel. Our mission is to give hope to the hopeless and be the person we needed when we wanted to give up. I am most proud of how many lives I’ve touched… people from all over the world have placed orders because they have personally struggled with their mental health, have lost someone to suicide or just to be supportive and let someone know that they are more than enough.
As of right now, we are just selling shirts but I am hoping to partner with a couple of mental health professionals and 100% of I Am Sufficient donations will cover counseling and therapy sessions for those who want help from a professional and can not afford it. What sets my line apart from other businesses is that I’m discussing my personal elephant in the room with the world on a t-shirt and I’m sending free t-shirts to suicide survivors around the world. Our most popular shirt is “Suicidal to Sufficient – You are more than enough” and our most recent shirts are “Black and Significant – We are more than enough” for those who have dealt with racial trauma and “My Mental Health Matters – Breaking the Stigma” for those who stand with us, and want to break the stigma of mental illness.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
The pandemic has played a huge role in my life and business. I would say I’ve been blessed, not lucky. I started working remotely and it gave me the time that I needed to really sit down and focus more on different marketing skills, creating my logo and designing my shirts.
Contact Info:
- Website: iamsufficient.com
- Phone: 470-721-0773
- Email: iamsufficientclothing@gmail.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/iamsufficient.clothing
- Facebook: facebook.com/iamsufficient.clothing
Image Credit:
Photography by Becky Noble, CEO and owner of Noble and Pure LLC
Makeup by Mary Williams
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