Mental health problems affect around one in four people in any given year. They range from the more common problems such as anxiety and depression, to rarer problems such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.
‘Mental health’ refers to your mental wellness. A fluid and ever-changing thing. It can depend on social environments, childhood abuse, the death of a loved one or it can grab you from the light and pull you into the dark when you least expect it.
In the last few years there’s been a huge spike in the amount of people willing to talk about their mental health but recently I’ve seen on social media and throughout people’s blogs talk of mental health being treated as ‘fashionable’ and a ‘trend’. People are feeling invalidated and this is what I’d like to discuss. I’m seeking genuine answers. Play devils advocate and lets have a debate.
Does this sudden freedom of what was once a taboo subject invalidate people suffering with debilitating mental health, or does it help people to know that they’re not alone?
Does it help to know there are others out there like you?
People have claimed others, particularly on social media to be attention-seeking by posting content relating to mental well being. If they’re looking for such attention in the first place, does that indicate a problem in itself?
Is the reason more and more people are claiming to be mentally unwell because its becoming more accepted? Were they suffering in silence before now?
I think mental health issues are much more common than we once thought.
How do we judge these people we claim to be attention-seeking? Do we turn them away just in case they’re attention-seeking? Or do we support them just in case they are unwell? Which leads to worse consequences?
My family and I have always been susceptible to poor mental health for one reason or another. I’m incredibly lucky that I have always felt comfortable talking about my state of mind to friends and family and have written blogs about it to tell others ‘you’re not alone’ and ‘we can fight this together’. I wouldn’t consider myself attention-seeking in the slightest, but by promoting my blog on social media, do I fall into the bracket of attention-seeking? Or am I simply trying to help people? This one’s not a rhetorical question – the answer is the latter.
My friends, especially the boys, are becoming more and more comfortable to speak about there mental health and social media has a small part to play in it (at the same time social media is massively contributing to mental illness but this is an issue in its own right). Major celebrities and influences on young people are speaking out about their own experiences and it’s normalising the suffering that one in four of us will experience. A twinge of anxiety is mental health. Wanting to spend three days is your mental health.
On the other hand, 8 months of suicidal thoughts from your bedroom or riding a psychotic high blissfully unaware you’re about to experience the all-time crash that you do every time the three-month cycle reappears is a different ball game. But should it still be recognised?
The one thing I do know is that if people are speaking out, it’s probably saving lives and that can only be a good thing.
- To talk about anything that is upsetting you, you can contact Samaritans 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. You can call 116 123 (free from any phone), email jo@samaritans.org or visit some branches in person. You can also call the Welsh Language Line on 0300 123 3011 (7pm–11pm every day).
- If you’re experiencing a mental health problem or supporting someone else, you can call SANEline on 0300 304 7000 (4.30pm–10.30pm every day).
- If you’re under 25, you can call The Mix on 0808 808 4994 (Sunday-Friday 2pm–11pm), request support by email using this form on The Mix website or use their crisis text messenger service.
- If you’re under 35 and struggling with suicidal feelings, or concerned about a young person who might be struggling, you can call Papyrus HOPELINEUK on 0800 068 4141 (weekdays 10am-10pm, weekends 2pm-10pm and bank holidays 2pm–10pm), email pat@papyrus-uk.org or text 07786 209 697.
- If you identify as male, you can call the Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM) on 0800 58 58 58 (5pm–midnight every day) or use their webchat service.
- If you’re a student, you can look on the Nightline website to see if your university or college offers a night-time listening service. Nightline phone operators are all students too.
- If you identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender, you can call Switchboard on 0300 330 0630 (10am–10pm every day), email chris@switchboard.lgbt or use their webchat service. Phone operators all identify as LGBT+.
- If you live in Wales, you can call the Community Advice and Listening Line (C.A.L.L). on 0800 123 737 (open 24/7) or you can text ‘help’ followed by a question to 81066.
Mia Said 