(Apology in advance for formatting or typos, I’m writing from my phone. This is so important to me that I want to express it now instead of when I have time at a computer.)
All day I kept thinking about what to write in regards to World Mental Health Day. This year has been hard for me and the last few years have been the hardest of my life. I don’t have any shame or embarrassment talking about the fact that I struggle with anxiety, depression, or any other mental health disorder. I know for some people talking about those things is hard. That’s okay.
Either way, if you’re comfortable publicly talking about it or not, just know that it’s okay to not be okay. Don’t be ashamed or embarrassed. 20% of adults will experience some type of mental health issue this year. Thats roughly 1 in 5 people.
With our society and the culture of the information age, we as humans are likely smarter than ever… which in my opinion opens up so many doors, both good and bad. We have constant access to informational resources, the world’s knowledge at our finger tips, and the ability to communicate 24/7 with just about every person in our lives.
For me, a lot of my struggles and issues are caused by over-analyzing, assuming the worst case scenario, miscommunicating through text messages, or putting WAY too much value and thought into read-receipts.
Everyone values different things. Everyone communicates slightly differently. Everyone expresses their emotions differently. Everyone lives a different life. We even experience the same situations differently. With the variation in the human brain, Living, Loving, and Laughing isn’t always easy. Different aspects of life are easy for some people while that same thing may be someone else’s kryptonite.
I think that the world has a tendency to see new diseases or disorders that become common diagnoses as more of a fad. Take for example, the diagnosis rate of ADHD, the diagnosis rate of Autism, or the diagnosis of Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS). All of these things seem to become “popular” diagnoses at some point in the last 30 years, but not prior to their popularization.
Why? Because it’s the cool thing? Because it’s the newest thing? Because everyone wants some sort of reason to claim they struggle or that their life is harder than others? No. I’m going to say none of those are it. I think one of the major causes is due to the ability to have information at the tip of our fingers in seconds. The ability to co-create, simultaneously. The ability to discuss, confer, and combine data with people on the other side of the world who speak a different language. The technical ability to test for these things has just recently progressed or maybe even has just been invented. For good or bad, the advancements in science and technology have led us here.
Maybe 100 years ago the same percentage of people didn’t suffer from RLS, but 100 years ago how many people spent 8+ hours a day in a sitting position? Not saying that’s a cause, I’m not a doctor. I’m just saying the world is different than it has ever been before. Nature is constantly changing and evolving, thus even nature is different than it was 100 years ago. That’s just how life works; in order for us to survive we must advance and improve ourselves in order to keep up.
Now, I have to say, I wish there wasn’t a negative stigma attached with mental health. I’m sorry that there is, actually. Sure, I am taking the risk of putting myself and my mental health issues out in the open. However, my hope is that at least ONE of my Insta or Twitter followers, Facebook friends, or Snapchat viewers will recognize that their struggles are valid. And that it’s okay to seek help, regardless of what that help is.
I want you to know that it took me 12 months to find a new therapist after having a horrible one. Not all of those months were spent looking for one; half of that time was me allowing myself/convincing myself to be okay with the concept that I needed a new therapist. Help is not easy to find, or to afford unfortunately. But use your good days to take care of yourself for those bad days.
In order for the world to keep improving, we must keep improving. Associating a negative stigma to mental health problems does absolutely no good for society. We must acknowledge our problems (as a society, culture, race, etc.) in order to fix them. Hiding them, suppressing them, invalidating them will only allow them to grow into worse problems. And I mean that in every sense. We have to be okay with the fact that sometimes we aren’t okay. And that’s okay. It is the only way to move forward.
Please take some time this week to check in with your friends. Ask, and genuinely listen, to see if they’re okay. Let them know that it’s alright if they aren’t. Any resource you can provide is helpful whether that be a website, a phone number, a coffee-date, or simply being someone they can text when they’re having a rough day. All of these actions show sympathy, and you never know, but doing this one simple thing may save someone’s life.
Acknowledge that mental health issues are real; they are as real as physical illnesses. Accept that these issues are valid. Whether it’s sometimes or all the time, it’s okay to not be okay. 🖤
Lying to Myself 