Every Sunday at 7 p.m., a growing crowd gathers at North Avenue Beach near Castaways in Chicago to scream their stress away. Scream Club Chicago, a free weekly meet-up, offers a unique therapeutic outlet where participants release pent-up emotions in a supportive, judgment-free environment. Founded by Manny Hernandez, a coach who relocated from Los Angeles, the club attracts Chicagoans seeking an unconventional approach to mental stress relief.
The sessions begin with deep breathing exercises to calm and prepare participants. Members then write their frustrations on biodegradable paper, which they toss into Lake Michigan, symbolizing the release of emotional burdens. The group ends the event with three collective screams directed at the lake, an act that often leaves participants feeling lighter and happier. Tears are common, as the process helps release emotions that many struggle to process in daily life.
Manny Hernandez launched Scream Club Chicago to provide a space where people can express themselves freely without fear of judgment. “You never have permission to scream in the middle of your apartment, because the police will get called,” Hernandez told Mint. His initiative creates a safe environment for participants to let go of anxiety in a way that’s not feasible at home.
Hernandez explains that daily challenges create a buildup of stress and emotions. “We’re all just balls of energy of things that happen in our day-to-day lives, and we just hold on to that stuff a lot,” he said. Screaming offers a powerful release, helping participants feel unburdened.
Co-founder Elena Soboleva emphasizes the club’s role as a “safe space” where no one judges. Participants feel supported and free to be themselves, fostering a sense of community. The club resonates with a diverse group, including Mamie Amin, who brought her 5-year-old daughter to a session to demonstrate healthy emotional expression.
“We’ve had a lot of change in our life lately, and my daughter has been feeling a lot of feelings, and I feel like it’s a really good thing for her to see grown-ups handling all their sad, hard feelings in a healthy way,” Amin told ABC7.
Regular attendee Xander Ruvalcaba, who joined on a whim, now participates weekly.
I attended one day, and it made me feel happy at the end of it, getting all that screaming out of my system.Xander Ruvalcaba, regular attendee of the club
The club’s growing popularity reflects its impact, with more Chicagoans joining each week to experience this unique form of therapy.
While the idea of gathering to scream into the open air may sound unconventional, Scream Club Chicago taps into a deep and growing need for emotional expression in high-stress urban life. As conversations around mental health continue to evolve, alternative forms of stress relief like these highlight how people are seeking community and catharsis in new, creative ways.
Whether viewed as therapy, ritual, or release, such gatherings offer insight into how emotional wellness can take many forms—sometimes loud, raw, and unexpectedly healing.
(Rh/Eth/Pooja Bansal/MSM/SE)