why did they get an actress who had to play a mental patient when there are so many to whom it comes naturally?

What a stupid picture.

It is disgusting that Vs. Magazine would seek out someone to pictorialize mental illness. I cannot believe that Eva Mendes would choose to portray herself in this manner. It is completely inappropriate. Mental illness is no laughing matter. Would depicting cancer patients in this way be socially-acceptable? Individuals with psychiatric issues deserve the same respect and care as people with any other disease. Mendes should be ashamed. It is not sexy and the public should boycott her films.

This is a tasteless and idiotic premise. People who suffer from severe mental illnesses that cause them to be hospitalized suffer from the one of the worst diseases you can ever imagine. This is another example of ignorance and stupidity in the human race!

Wow. How can I say "Appalled and pissed" vs. "Like" on FB? If you are really offended, write to editor@vsmagazinelive.com to complain. I'm all for free speech but to combine glamor, fashion, and suffering into one image - the photographer's got artistic guts but the editors are idiots. I'll be sending this image to NAMI - National Alliance on Mental Illness. Vs. Magazine - I hope you're getting the response you hoped for.

i am very saddened to see the display of mentally handicapped people. my sister just was placed for pshychiatric evaluation, and it's no joke. to display this on a cover of a magazine is sick,,,,, that's what i think. revolting. go f ur self mendez. u don't seem to understand how tough it is for all concerned

This picture is so offensive it's sickening, who is the idiot who came up with this tacky and tasteless idea ? I used to work in a Mental health rehab and dealt with people who had real mantel problems ... I find this picture disgusting and offensive. Shame on Vs Magazine and Shame on Eva Mendes for posing for it.

TO ECHO ANOTHER STATEMENT, "MENTAL ILLNESS IS NO JOKE!!!!!!!!". tHERE IS STILL SUCH A HUGE STIGMA ASSOCIATED WITH MENTAL ILLNESS. THI IS DEMEANING TO PEOPLE WITH ANY MENTAL ILLNESS AND ALSO TO NURSES.

I have never written a comment before, but I just cannot today. Please write to stigmabusters@nami.org and the editor of this magazine editor@vsmagazinelive.com I have PTSD and have been hospitalized to save my life. I am in tears as I write this. How could this idea have gotten all the way to print. Please take a moment to write. Thank you on behalf of a lot of people who are unable to stand up for themselves. thank you

As a person with mental illness I find this sickening. The stigma of mental illness has made some good strides, but this campaign can only serve to further the stigma that we live with and fight against on a daily basis. This is absolutely disgusting. Eva Mendez & Vs magazine should be ashamed. They could pull the ad completely, but that would cost $$$$$ and ,god forbid they should lose income. Money talks, truth walks. I want Tracy Lutz to know she is not alone. I too will sending this to NAMI for them to include in their Stigma Buster Alert. They have power. Not as much money as you, but power in numbers is great..........incase you didn't already know that! Let's get the word out there together Tracy. I am grateful that you wrote!

If "Vs Magazine" was intending something "new and fresh"? Well, you did accomplish that...you stupid dillweeds have ripped open "new and fesh" wounds into my soul!

I have been living with severe mental illness (Schizo-Affective Disorder,and Major Depression) for over four decades. I really thought that as a society, we made great strides in our relations between "normies" and "clients."

This article and photo shoot proves otherwise. There are still folks out there who, for the right price, would play out the same old stereotypes...and laugh all the way to the bank afterwards!

No, it's rather obvious that we still have a long way to go. And more is the pity, really. For the very illness they mock in this "photo shoot" could be the very ilness that nails them when they least expect it!

To Vs Magazine and Eve Mendes, I say this:
"WE HAVE BEEN LIKE YOU...AND YOU CAN BECOME LIKE US!"

And to the bozo who came up with this lunacy:
"TAKE YOUR "IDEA" AND INSERT IT INTO YOUR RECTAL CAVITY, SANS BENEFIT OF K-Y!"

And as for those who tell us to "lighten up, it was all done in fun," I quote a line from Metallica's "My Friend Of Misery":
"One man's fun is another's hell!"

--RKJ

As the mother of an autistic teen, this magazine spread turns my stomach. Maybe Ms. Mendez should volunteer some of her time by working with patients who have mental challenges and disorders. Better yet, let her sit and view film footage of some of these places and the poor souls who inhabit them.

Hey Geraldo Rivera ... how about Fedexing footage of your Willowbrook expose to this bonehead of an "actress" ???