Mental Health Awareness Month
I hate that I am so late on this blog post but maybe it was needed for my own mental health. Mental Health Awareness Month was celebrated this May. This helps to end stigma and build awareness to Mental health issues that you or a loved one might be struggling with.
Something that I have found working in this field is that when a new client comes in (well any client for that matter) they fear they are going to find out they are completely “crazy”, “mad”, “lunatics”, who need to potentially be locked up in a state hospital. It sounds dramatic I know, but this is the truth. I personally feel that this extreme line of thinking is due to mental health stigma as well as social media and entertainment culture. It is also a very black and white type of thinking pattern: you are either someone who is completely insane, or you are fine, and you just need to brush it off. It reminds me of growing up. Anytime someone injured themselves everyone told them to walk it off, “Walk it off you will be fine, it is just a scratch”. If no one is bleeding everyone is ok. Which isn’t false 😊.
I find that individuals use the same type of care with their mental health: “I lived”, “I am not hurting anyone”, “The past is the past”, “It is what it is”, “It could be worse”, “There is no point in talking about it now”. Just like our physical health we must care for our mental health. If you let that scratch get infected, you will eventually need an antibiotic and if you allow your trauma to go untreated it will infect your whole life.
Another issue I find with mental health stigma, is due to the fact that unlike medical conditions we do not necessarily have blood tests, MRI’s, or X-Rays to show where your anxiety, depression, or bipolar disorder to located, and the 2 rounds of antibiotics its going to take to get rid of it. Mental illnesses are not tangible, and we do not have medical proof (we do but not your medical model type of proof) that they exist. There is no blood test to prove that anyone has a mental illness, but there is evidence that shows that mental illnesses do in fact change and show changes in the brain. How you feel in day to day living is REAL proof of your illness. You are not lazy, you are depressed. You are not being ridiculous; you have anxiety that you cannot control. You don’t need to just get over it, you have Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. These very real things can be treated, managed, and it does not make you “crazy”.
Studies show that 1 in 5 people have a mental illness and it is more common than cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. That means that you are probably with someone right now who most likely is struggling. Statistically this is a common issue, but it is not a common topic of discussion. We must start talking about mental health. We must start talking to one another about how we feel. It sounds hippy dippy but talking saves more lives than you could ever know. Here are a few things you can do to reduce stigma and improve your mental health.
1. Get to talking: In order to raise awareness of mental illness we must start talking to each other about it. You, your mother, child, friend, cousin, husband may be struggling and you or they do not even know it.
2. Do not minimize: Once you get the conversation started do not minimize someone’s experience or feelings. It could be a small issue for you but a mountain to someone else. Don’t try to fix the issue you are just there to support and listen.
3. Educate yourself: Guys we all know you are reading about what Prince Harry and Meghan named their little bundle of joy or what Kim K wore to the met gala. No offense but this will not improve your life in any way. If you aren’t solving world hunger on Facebook stop scrolling for a few minutes to do some serious research on mental illnesses. Ok, I am going to stop you right there, I am not talking about psychopaths and Ted Bundy. I mean real things that could be affecting you or your loved ones. Do you understand anxiety, depression, eating disorders, OCD, PTSD, and recovery from a narcissistic relationship? Take some time to learn what they are going through and how you can support them.
4. Treat mental illness like medical illnesses: if you would send your kid to a doctor for their broken leg then send them to a therapist for their depression. Be honest with your doctor. If you feel you are struggling with mental health symptoms, most of the time they have therapists they know who they can refer you to.
5. Prevention: you do not need to be ready to take the bridge to go see a therapist. If you do not feel like yourself, you are overwhelmed with life, you can’t seem to get out of bed, you are worried all the time, that is enough to go talk to someone. Sooner rather than later is always best.
6. Self-Care: You hear this a lot, but it is important to incorporate self-care into your schedule. Just like eating right and exercising is going to improve your physical health it will improve your mental health. If you are removing soda from your diet because it is bad for you, you should probably also remove toxic people because they are bad for you. Get where I am going with this? Here is a link to a list of self-care activities you can try https://liveboldandbloom.com/09/self-improvement/self-care-ideas
7. Check out my resources tab for a list of potential resources to get you started https://www.empoweredbycounseling.com/new-page-2. You can also check out Psychology Today or Therapy Den to find a therapist in your area.