Mental Health

[4ScienceYouMonster]

Mental health stigma should not be a thing in Anno Domini 2019. The brain is an organ, like lungs and pancreas. Like all the organs, it can suffer several forms of damage and malfunction. Yet you don’t hear people say “asthma is only in your lungs”, or “you are too dependent on insulin, have you ever tried not to be diabetic?”. So why are many still considering mental illness a matter of willpower?

Anxiety is not "feeling quite nervous before a job interview". Depression is not sadness, nor laziness.  We should stop trying to define other people’s experience on the basis of our own.

[naghma]

I agree with you. I've had chronic depression and severe anxiety for a long time now and i'm really sick of people telling me that it will pass eventually and that once i shift my attention to something else i will be ok while others think that i'm just "too weak" or over sensitive . I think that people have misleading ideas when it comes to mental health, somehow they forget that the brain is an organ that can have several problems, those problems may leads to conditions such as depression and anxiety, our society needs knowldge and enlightenment.

[Marigold111]

I agree with both of you. I suffered from mental health problems such as severe clinical depression, anxiety and PTSD for around 30 years, and experienced the stigma and lack of support you talk about. I cured myself a couple of years ago - I started meditating every day, and I am sure that is what made the difference. My mental health is now excellent, and it has given me a lot of compassion and understanding for others who are suffering like this. 

[rikemich823]

I used to feel much differently about this topic, then I was personally hit with a spell of minor depression. Even such a small bump in the road for me really opened my eyes to how serious this issue is. I started seeing a therapist and was able to start practicing techniques to help myself improve. However, I realize that my experience is on the far easier side of the spectrum than what so many others suffer through

[nbelanger]

As a person who suffers with Bi-Polar disorder, ADD and depression I agree with your comment about how mental health stigmas should not be a thing in Anno Domini 2019. I often feel ashamed of my illnesses due to the cloud of stigmas that linger around them. I can relate with member, naghma, when people told her/him that their feelings would pass. I have had people tell me to just be positive or to listen to my favorite song, in which they do not understand that people who suffer with mental illnesses do not have some magic switch to turn on or off anytime they like. I believe it is beneficial and crucial to raise awareness concerning the science behind mental illness in hopes of it creating positive changes for anyone and everyone who either deals with it or is touched by it. Thank you for shedding light on the fact that the brain can have legit medical conditions just as other organs in our bodies do. 

[ThePerk13]

There are a lot of good points made here. A main difference I think we should point out is that while the brain is an organ such as the liver or lungs, there isn't a corrective surgery or medicine that fixes it. While there are pills for people with depression and anxiety these are not always the answer. I think something awesome to point out is that Colorado just decriminalized psilocybin or "magic mushrooms" and that means scientists are going to be able to do more research and digging in to if these could help people with mental illness problems. To me, it seems that people should and will be more open minded about a solution to helping people with mental illnesses.