The stigma of mental health issues and how it's hurting all of us
Update 11pm: Now that I feel like I've established a foundation for the purpose of this blog, I'm going to stick with posting once every other Monday. Feel free to subscribe by email as well! So until my next post... :)
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I know I previously alluded that this post was going to be about my acting but I decided I wanted to talk a little more about why I think we need to have honest and open discussions about mental health issues.
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How many times have we looked at someone suffering from an eating disorder and thought, how could they do something like that to themselves? And then go and feel guilty about eating a donut.
How about telling someone suffering from depression that you know, things could be a lot worse? But then let a critical comment bother you all day.
While one is labeled a mental disorder and the other is considered more "normal", both situations are driven by our emotions. And a lot of times, because we judge those that we've labeled, we often don't see how we're participating in similar behaviors. Because no reasonable person would starve themselves, right?
But the thing is, we do rationalize these behaviors, "I should be conscious of my health," or "I just need to get over it" rather than realizing it is an emotional response to something that is bothering us (e.g. body image and self-esteem).
We are emotional beings as much as we are logical ones. In fact, having emotions is what makes us human rather than robots. I think if we all stopped suppressing our emotions, we'd all understand each other a lot better. Because sadness and feeling pain is what allows us to empathize with others.
Not to say that we should just be moody people all the time. We should still strive to be better versions of ourselves. But we need to realize that it's OK to slip up because we're only human. And if we could stop judging that part of ourselves, we'd all be more understanding and supportive of each others' problems.
I get that some people might argue that being emotional is a hindrance because it affects our decision making and focus. This is especially important with occupations such as doctors, lawyers, police, etc.
But everyone has a breaking point. Using really extreme examples, we see it with veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or celebrities such as the late Robin Williams succumbing to depression. And how many times have we seen people on the media saying that they never suspected someone being capable of murder??
I'd also argue that having a balanced emotional side would make people better doctors, lawyers, police, etc.
All humans have emotions (even your psychopathic ex) and just like disease and natural disasters, mental illness can happen to any of us... especially if we are not learning how to deal with our emotional selves.
But once we accept that we are capable of having strong feelings and reactions, we can begin addressing how to live with them in a controlled and productive way. And more importantly, how to support each other for when we inevitably do mess up.
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In my post about my acting, I am going to talk a little about how I played a girl who had a mental breakdown in the scene I worked on. The scene is from the play The Woolgatherer if you want to look it up.
-------------
I know I previously alluded that this post was going to be about my acting but I decided I wanted to talk a little more about why I think we need to have honest and open discussions about mental health issues.
-------------
How many times have we looked at someone suffering from an eating disorder and thought, how could they do something like that to themselves? And then go and feel guilty about eating a donut.
How about telling someone suffering from depression that you know, things could be a lot worse? But then let a critical comment bother you all day.
While one is labeled a mental disorder and the other is considered more "normal", both situations are driven by our emotions. And a lot of times, because we judge those that we've labeled, we often don't see how we're participating in similar behaviors. Because no reasonable person would starve themselves, right?
But the thing is, we do rationalize these behaviors, "I should be conscious of my health," or "I just need to get over it" rather than realizing it is an emotional response to something that is bothering us (e.g. body image and self-esteem).
We are emotional beings as much as we are logical ones. In fact, having emotions is what makes us human rather than robots. I think if we all stopped suppressing our emotions, we'd all understand each other a lot better. Because sadness and feeling pain is what allows us to empathize with others.
Not to say that we should just be moody people all the time. We should still strive to be better versions of ourselves. But we need to realize that it's OK to slip up because we're only human. And if we could stop judging that part of ourselves, we'd all be more understanding and supportive of each others' problems.
I get that some people might argue that being emotional is a hindrance because it affects our decision making and focus. This is especially important with occupations such as doctors, lawyers, police, etc.
But everyone has a breaking point. Using really extreme examples, we see it with veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or celebrities such as the late Robin Williams succumbing to depression. And how many times have we seen people on the media saying that they never suspected someone being capable of murder??
I'd also argue that having a balanced emotional side would make people better doctors, lawyers, police, etc.
All humans have emotions (even your psychopathic ex) and just like disease and natural disasters, mental illness can happen to any of us... especially if we are not learning how to deal with our emotional selves.
But once we accept that we are capable of having strong feelings and reactions, we can begin addressing how to live with them in a controlled and productive way. And more importantly, how to support each other for when we inevitably do mess up.
--------------
In my post about my acting, I am going to talk a little about how I played a girl who had a mental breakdown in the scene I worked on. The scene is from the play The Woolgatherer if you want to look it up.
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