When it comes to health, society has no trouble understanding physical illnesses such as cancer - after all, it has symptoms you can see. 

But where mental wellbeing is concerned, it's a grey area that, especially for those who suffer from them, can be difficult to put into words.

Which is why illustrator Nick Seluk, of The Awkward Yeti, created a comic that shows exactly what it's like to experience anxiety or depression.

It's part of a wider series called Medical Tales Retold, where he hopes to normalise other medical topics.

He said, “By taking medical issues and adding a sub-storyline to each one (I referred to it as “embellishments”), my goal was to teach, entertain, and/or normalise medical topics. Mental illness fits perfectly into this, it just isn’t as widely understood. 

“It’s easy to see someone’s gaping flesh wound and be like 'oh that probably hurts pretty bad, let’s fix that' but mental illness requires either experience, or a much more advanced sense of empathy.”

This graphic was inspired by one of Seluk's followers, Sarah Flanigan, “I took stories from hundreds of fans and chose the ones that I thought could be relatable and adapt well into my comic style.”

If you are suffering from anxiety or depression, you can call the Samaritans confidential 24-hour helpline on 08457 90 90 90.

Images: Nick Seluk and Thinkstock