Approach

The Cereal for Dinner Approach

At Cereal for Dinner, we believe that living with a persistent mental health condition does not mean putting life on hold. Too often, support for mental health is framed around the idea that recovery means eliminating or stabilizing symptoms. But what happens when symptoms persist? Many of us are left waiting—waiting to feel "better" before we pursue what matters to us.

We take a different approach. We recognize mental health conditions as a disability* that deserve the same care, attention, and structural support as any other disability. Instead of focusing primarily on symptom management, we center our work on building what makes life meaningful: agency, belonging, and purpose.

*Note: 'Disability' is used to describe a mental health condition that is functionally impairing, in the context of environments lacking inclusion or equity. Many challenges arise not from the condition itself, but from societal barriers that fail to accommodate diverse needs.

Mental Health Conditions Have a Major Impact on Daily Life

The facts speak for themselves.

Mental health conditions are among the leading causes of disability worldwide, responsible for 17% of the global disability burden. (1)
‍
Major depression alone ranks alongside chronic illnesses like diabetes and arthritis in its impact on daily functioning. (2)

In our 2024 Cereal for Dinner survey, respondents with mental health conditions shared:

‍56%said their mental health often or always made daily tasks difficult.

‍50%
felt they didn’t have enough support for daily living tasks.

‍91%
said their mental health made it difficult to engage in things that mattered to them.

Many of the greatest difficulties people with mental health conditions face—unemployment, isolation, financial insecurity—come not from their symptoms, but from an environment that isn’t structured to support them.

Despite the widespread impact, most systems of care still prioritize symptom reduction over systemic and community-based supports that help people function, connect, and engage in daily life.

A New Model of Support:
The Cereal for Dinner Approach

Cereal for Dinner is redefining what mental health support looks like. We focus on meeting people where they are, providing resources and strategies that help individuals live meaningful lives—even when mental health challenges persist.

We build opportunities to support:

Agency - Expanding capacity to take intentional action toward valued goals.

Belonging – Creating connections and reducing isolation through shared experiences and inclusion.

Purpose – Supporting engagement in valued activities, regardless of mental health fluctuations.

Instead of asking people to wait until symptoms improve, we focus on making daily life more accessible, inclusive and fulfilling—right now.

The CFD Online Platform

Cereal for Dinner online platform offers practical, peer-driven tools to help people navigate daily life and pursue what matters, with chronic mental health challenges, while

What Makes Us Different?

Peer-generated, practical resources

Our platform is built on the knowledge and lived experiences of people who truly understand. Recovery isn’t top-down—it’s collective.

The Bandwidth Approach

Life with mental health challenges isn’t linear, and neither is recovery. That’s why our resources are tailored to meet people where they are, offering strategies for low, medium, and high bandwidth times.

Focus on Functional Living

By focusing on the outcomes that matter to individuals, we’re building a vital piece of recovery infrastructure—one that helps people live & thrive, even while adjusting for the realities of mental health challenges.

The Cereal for Dinner Approach

Mental Health Conditions Have a Major Impact on Daily Life

A New Model of Support: The Cereal for Dinner Approach

The CFD Online Platform

Let’s Continue to Redefine Mental Health Support

A New Model of Support:
The Cereal for Dinner Approach