03-11-2018, 02:44 PM
I feel like, certainly in the UK, there's been a significant change in how people view mental disorders amongst men and women. Suicide is the biggest cause of death amongst men age 18-25, and whilst the NHS still provides help through therapy programmes (CBT and DBT are two popular ones) alongside one-to-one help from Community Psychiatric Nurses, Psychiatrists & Psychologists, there have been many not-for-profit organisations that have opened up to support people with mental health in light of some of the long waits one must painfully sit through to receive such NHS services. People are much more likely to be open about being on medication for drugs or to speak about their own mental illnesses to one another than they were 5-10 years ago. There are an extraordinary number of caring and understanding people out there.
With that being said, there will always be the other side of the coin. It's important to note that everyone has felt anxious, or sad before however these emotions are vastly different to how they manifest in a disorder or illness. So for someone who is only used to perhaps dealing with anxiety before an event such as presenting an idea to a board room of people (a scenario which would intimate most, even if only slightly) may be baffled to the idea that another person could get panic attacks upon waking up, anxiety upon interacting with other people, and that person may understand even less that the person has little no control over this disorder. The person then thinks to back their own presentation experience - when they have had to push themselves through some anxious feelings - and thinks "why can't they get over it like I do?". This thought doesn't make them a bad person. It just means they have likely never had training or been required to understand a state of mind vastly different from their own. I do not have schizophrenia and I can imagine how such an illness can be a living hell to deal with at times, however I do not understand how such an illness would feel. I would never ever tell someone to 'get over it' though, which feels like a short-sighted callous comment.
We are making progress as a society but the "it's not that bad" "why don't you just try X" misunderstood people still exist. Going forward, how do we approach such people with sensitivity to their own thoughts and beliefs to help them adjust their spectacles on mental health issues?
1. Mandatory classes in Primary School and Secondary School regarding mental health issues. No, I don't believe these should be included as part of the biology part of a Science class. Why? Because in the UK, pre-Higher Education is largely "we are teaching you this word for word so you can recite those words and regurgitate them in to your exam papers, forcing you to cram an unnecessarily large volume of information into your mind at once, which will inevitably be forgotten soon after your exams are over." I cannot say whether this is the same for other countries, but in the UK education is very much a stressful endeavour for teachers who are unable to present content in a subject in a varied and intriguing way, what it boils down to is "Will this be included in the exam? No? Then I'm not allowed to teach it because it's wasting time". It's a sad affair for both teachers and students because so much knowledge is lost in the process because of how strictly defined lessons are now. Anyway, a lesson once a week towards mental health, with people coming in perhaps saying how they manage their mental health, giving insights into how their mental health has affected their life, treatments available to seek out and how you best navigate such thoughts, feelings and beliefs caused by mental health illnesses to live the most stable life you possibly can. This is just off the top of my head. Students who don't have mental health issues grow up with an understanding of people who do, and students growing up considering there may be internal issues to address are able to feel that this is not CRAZY or ABNORMAL, mental health issues affect 1 in 4 of us and do not affect your character. They are exactly,like physical illnesses in that once you understand there is a problem, you look for treatment.
2. Training courses at work to educate those who have already grown up and still lack understanding of how mental health issues affect people's lives. Much of the content taught in schools I propose in my first point can be adjusted to a more adult point of view and still have a similar level of effectiveness.
3. Keep the conversation going. In my group therapy I have met people with my own exact diagnosises who have gone on to earn university degrees and thrive in incredibly successful (yet also incredibly demanding) careers. I speak to friends about mental health issues in a non-judgemental manner and encourage others to do the same. You will have met people in your life who seem, on the outside, as if they "have it all". I also know people like this, however what acquaintances around them don't see if the inner demons they still tackle. People don't understand that just people they have a smile on their face and a high-functioning lifestyle, that anything could possibly be wrong. Mental health issues come in all shapes and sizes, as do people. Remember how in the Harry Potter books, people who feared Voldemort called him 'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named', which only increased their fear of him? If we don't talk about mental health, it remains a taboo subject and simply not one people are willing to start. Be brave, talk to those closest (or those who are most understanding) around you. You may teach them something they never knew before. I know I am constantly amazed by the insights and level of empathetic understanding I hear from others regarding the topic of mental health.
I realise this thread is more about anxiety per se rather than mental health as a whole, but I feel if you substitute the words 'mental health' for 'anxiety' in this post, the shoe still fits.
To anyone suffering with an anxiety disorder I say this: You have weathered many storms that has given you a strength you may not even recognise. You are a warrior. You are a survivor. You are not defined by your illness. You are human just like everyone else, which means you are just as deserving of respect, kindness and love as anyone else. Keep your heads high and be proud of everything you've achieved in spite of your anxiety. Even if it means simply waking up another day, you are achieving so much every day as you fight your invisible monster. You are not your anxiety, you have a beautiful soul, a beautiful heart and a beautiful mind.
With that being said, there will always be the other side of the coin. It's important to note that everyone has felt anxious, or sad before however these emotions are vastly different to how they manifest in a disorder or illness. So for someone who is only used to perhaps dealing with anxiety before an event such as presenting an idea to a board room of people (a scenario which would intimate most, even if only slightly) may be baffled to the idea that another person could get panic attacks upon waking up, anxiety upon interacting with other people, and that person may understand even less that the person has little no control over this disorder. The person then thinks to back their own presentation experience - when they have had to push themselves through some anxious feelings - and thinks "why can't they get over it like I do?". This thought doesn't make them a bad person. It just means they have likely never had training or been required to understand a state of mind vastly different from their own. I do not have schizophrenia and I can imagine how such an illness can be a living hell to deal with at times, however I do not understand how such an illness would feel. I would never ever tell someone to 'get over it' though, which feels like a short-sighted callous comment.
We are making progress as a society but the "it's not that bad" "why don't you just try X" misunderstood people still exist. Going forward, how do we approach such people with sensitivity to their own thoughts and beliefs to help them adjust their spectacles on mental health issues?
1. Mandatory classes in Primary School and Secondary School regarding mental health issues. No, I don't believe these should be included as part of the biology part of a Science class. Why? Because in the UK, pre-Higher Education is largely "we are teaching you this word for word so you can recite those words and regurgitate them in to your exam papers, forcing you to cram an unnecessarily large volume of information into your mind at once, which will inevitably be forgotten soon after your exams are over." I cannot say whether this is the same for other countries, but in the UK education is very much a stressful endeavour for teachers who are unable to present content in a subject in a varied and intriguing way, what it boils down to is "Will this be included in the exam? No? Then I'm not allowed to teach it because it's wasting time". It's a sad affair for both teachers and students because so much knowledge is lost in the process because of how strictly defined lessons are now. Anyway, a lesson once a week towards mental health, with people coming in perhaps saying how they manage their mental health, giving insights into how their mental health has affected their life, treatments available to seek out and how you best navigate such thoughts, feelings and beliefs caused by mental health illnesses to live the most stable life you possibly can. This is just off the top of my head. Students who don't have mental health issues grow up with an understanding of people who do, and students growing up considering there may be internal issues to address are able to feel that this is not CRAZY or ABNORMAL, mental health issues affect 1 in 4 of us and do not affect your character. They are exactly,like physical illnesses in that once you understand there is a problem, you look for treatment.
2. Training courses at work to educate those who have already grown up and still lack understanding of how mental health issues affect people's lives. Much of the content taught in schools I propose in my first point can be adjusted to a more adult point of view and still have a similar level of effectiveness.
3. Keep the conversation going. In my group therapy I have met people with my own exact diagnosises who have gone on to earn university degrees and thrive in incredibly successful (yet also incredibly demanding) careers. I speak to friends about mental health issues in a non-judgemental manner and encourage others to do the same. You will have met people in your life who seem, on the outside, as if they "have it all". I also know people like this, however what acquaintances around them don't see if the inner demons they still tackle. People don't understand that just people they have a smile on their face and a high-functioning lifestyle, that anything could possibly be wrong. Mental health issues come in all shapes and sizes, as do people. Remember how in the Harry Potter books, people who feared Voldemort called him 'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named', which only increased their fear of him? If we don't talk about mental health, it remains a taboo subject and simply not one people are willing to start. Be brave, talk to those closest (or those who are most understanding) around you. You may teach them something they never knew before. I know I am constantly amazed by the insights and level of empathetic understanding I hear from others regarding the topic of mental health.
I realise this thread is more about anxiety per se rather than mental health as a whole, but I feel if you substitute the words 'mental health' for 'anxiety' in this post, the shoe still fits.
To anyone suffering with an anxiety disorder I say this: You have weathered many storms that has given you a strength you may not even recognise. You are a warrior. You are a survivor. You are not defined by your illness. You are human just like everyone else, which means you are just as deserving of respect, kindness and love as anyone else. Keep your heads high and be proud of everything you've achieved in spite of your anxiety. Even if it means simply waking up another day, you are achieving so much every day as you fight your invisible monster. You are not your anxiety, you have a beautiful soul, a beautiful heart and a beautiful mind.
