Mental Health Education and Awareness - not the same thing
Hello everyone, I hope you've all had a good week and are facing at least some time to relax over the weekend. Now, this post is a little unlike previous ones, but I wanted to write it and I'm hoping some of what I say will make sense. Now, for those of you who know, my latest book revolves around mental health but this post is not one long advertisement - you will see, no links, no cover pictures because this subject is far more important to me. Now with that said, I'll get started...
To begin with, I 'd like to say, I am completely supportive for mental health awareness becoming such an integral part of our day-to-day lives. Perhaps more than in any other time, society is far more used to hearing the various terms for different mental illnesses, which has to be a good thing. Like many of you, I'm sure, I hope this means the stigma that used to be attached by declaring yourself a sufferer, will also be a thing of the past. I hope employers will exercise a degree of compassion when a worker comes to them, explaining their particular issue - that might seem unlikely, but I believe it will happen.
Amidst all this positive change, I am concerned when 'mental health issues' are used to describe criminal behaviour. Recently we must have all been shocked by the mass shootings in the USA, coming from a country where guns are not commonplace, it seems like something that would only happen in a movie. But tragically, this is reality and we all share thoughts for those who were injured or killed. I was also saddened when mental health issues were described as root of the 'problem'. If that's true, how could someone who has received that diagnosis even be able to get their hands on a gun? But this is not a post about the rights and wrongs of gun control so I won't pursue that thought. However, what does concern me, is when someone says a perpetrator was suffering from, as an example, depression, bipolar, anxiety etc it suggests everyone with one or more of those conditions could well grab the nearest firearm and start shooting. This is blatantly untrue ! The vast majority of people with diagnosed issues would never hurt anyone. But to a portion of society who have never really understood the terms, it could well seem as if it was a real possibility. Furthermore, when I read about another perpetrator who was described as possibly having 'a little bit of autism' - well the only thing that remark shows is pure ignorance.
So you see, my point is, yes, we need mental health awareness but we also need the education that should be readily available.
The other side of the mental health coin is self-diagnosis, which can be equally damaging when it comes to mental health awareness. It has become, to some, almost fashionable to describe yourself as having something - which only acts to demean those who really do suffer. As an example, I am always disappointed when someone will post on social media about how they are having a panic attack - at the very time they are typing away, finding an appropriate image or meme and answering comments. I am fortunate, I do not suffer myself, but I am close to people who do and I can assure you, when the attack hits - they could no more type than fly. It's an awful thing to watch because you feel so helpless, as the sufferer struggles to breathe, can't focus at all and is basically incapacitated. Posts like those do nothing but make others feel panic attacks aren't really so bad, after all, how can they be? When a sufferer is still able to do everything even while they're in the midst of an episode! Other issues like depression seem to appear on an almost daily basis, the person posting will describe feeling sad and a bit down - those are not symptoms of anything other than having a low mood which will pass. Depression leaves sufferers incapable of even getting out of bed, the world feels like a hopeless, dark place and everything around them holds no real meaning any more. These depressive periods can last days, weeks, months or even years - not something to even try to compare to having a 'bad day.' I want to add, I think some of the Facebook pages run by communities of genuine sufferers are such an amazing way of bringing people together where experiences and knowledge can be shared. But the important words there are 'genuine sufferers.'
I feel very strongly, the way mental health is portrayed is vital to understanding, so if you do suffer, tell others the truth about what it feels like, share the experience - if you haven't ever received a diagnosis from a professional, then seek one out if you're struggling - don't just Google a few terms and try to make one of them fit you. As I said at the beginning of this post, awareness and education must go together, otherwise ignorance will remain in control which is detrimental to everyone.
Finally, as I hope you can see, this is an issue close to my heart which is why I feel so strongly, compassion for each other comes from understanding. The times we are living in seem to contain people who want to create divisions within society and this is nothing less than harmful. People with mental health issues can be anyone, from any walk of life, any skin colour, age, gender - so they cannot all be put in one 'convenient' group. They are not more likely to be responsible for crime because 'they' are all of us, so we all need to learn more so we can help each other more. The world is a scary place - even if you have no mental health issues at all - so it's up to all of us to help each other not only survive but thrive....until next time...
Take care out there xx
To begin with, I 'd like to say, I am completely supportive for mental health awareness becoming such an integral part of our day-to-day lives. Perhaps more than in any other time, society is far more used to hearing the various terms for different mental illnesses, which has to be a good thing. Like many of you, I'm sure, I hope this means the stigma that used to be attached by declaring yourself a sufferer, will also be a thing of the past. I hope employers will exercise a degree of compassion when a worker comes to them, explaining their particular issue - that might seem unlikely, but I believe it will happen.
Amidst all this positive change, I am concerned when 'mental health issues' are used to describe criminal behaviour. Recently we must have all been shocked by the mass shootings in the USA, coming from a country where guns are not commonplace, it seems like something that would only happen in a movie. But tragically, this is reality and we all share thoughts for those who were injured or killed. I was also saddened when mental health issues were described as root of the 'problem'. If that's true, how could someone who has received that diagnosis even be able to get their hands on a gun? But this is not a post about the rights and wrongs of gun control so I won't pursue that thought. However, what does concern me, is when someone says a perpetrator was suffering from, as an example, depression, bipolar, anxiety etc it suggests everyone with one or more of those conditions could well grab the nearest firearm and start shooting. This is blatantly untrue ! The vast majority of people with diagnosed issues would never hurt anyone. But to a portion of society who have never really understood the terms, it could well seem as if it was a real possibility. Furthermore, when I read about another perpetrator who was described as possibly having 'a little bit of autism' - well the only thing that remark shows is pure ignorance.
The other side of the mental health coin is self-diagnosis, which can be equally damaging when it comes to mental health awareness. It has become, to some, almost fashionable to describe yourself as having something - which only acts to demean those who really do suffer. As an example, I am always disappointed when someone will post on social media about how they are having a panic attack - at the very time they are typing away, finding an appropriate image or meme and answering comments. I am fortunate, I do not suffer myself, but I am close to people who do and I can assure you, when the attack hits - they could no more type than fly. It's an awful thing to watch because you feel so helpless, as the sufferer struggles to breathe, can't focus at all and is basically incapacitated. Posts like those do nothing but make others feel panic attacks aren't really so bad, after all, how can they be? When a sufferer is still able to do everything even while they're in the midst of an episode! Other issues like depression seem to appear on an almost daily basis, the person posting will describe feeling sad and a bit down - those are not symptoms of anything other than having a low mood which will pass. Depression leaves sufferers incapable of even getting out of bed, the world feels like a hopeless, dark place and everything around them holds no real meaning any more. These depressive periods can last days, weeks, months or even years - not something to even try to compare to having a 'bad day.' I want to add, I think some of the Facebook pages run by communities of genuine sufferers are such an amazing way of bringing people together where experiences and knowledge can be shared. But the important words there are 'genuine sufferers.'
I feel very strongly, the way mental health is portrayed is vital to understanding, so if you do suffer, tell others the truth about what it feels like, share the experience - if you haven't ever received a diagnosis from a professional, then seek one out if you're struggling - don't just Google a few terms and try to make one of them fit you. As I said at the beginning of this post, awareness and education must go together, otherwise ignorance will remain in control which is detrimental to everyone.
Take care out there xx
