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in dedication of mental health awareness week, this thread will discuss how the media romanticizes and glorifies mental illness.
historical context: mental health has a long history and to explain everything is impossible. it was a taboo topic, people who are diagnosed with mental illness used to be strained, called "mad" or "crazy" and have gotten lobotomies and shock therapies as a way to treat them.
the 21st century
1) "i might have anxiety"
2) "i'm so depressed today".
we hear people say this. it belittles the experience felt by people who are actually diagnosed with this illness. the media have instilled this idea that the words "anxiety" and "depressed" are adjectives.
1) "i might have anxiety"
2) "i'm so depressed today".
we hear people say this. it belittles the experience felt by people who are actually diagnosed with this illness. the media have instilled this idea that the words "anxiety" and "depressed" are adjectives.
the mainstream media are still negligent in trying to explain and understand the excruciating pain and struggles that people diagnosed with mental illness experience.
people especially young adults they want to be like their favorite book, movie, tv show characters because these media portrayed mental health in a way that it is "unique" or "beautiful" or "quirky". and this is not a good sign.
topics like mental illness are trivialized. its a culture where:
trying to profit off of mental illness is disgusting. here are some examples
i'm not going to name brands but these brands or influencers they sell merchandise that trivializes mental illness. if we want to talk about mental illness there are other ways to go about raising the awareness, not making it a fashion statement or something trendy.
in recent years it has become a trend to claim they are diagnosed with a mental illness. the media industry have a huge influence on this. they need to understand where they should draw the line between spreading awareness and giving negative influence
sometimes this would even lead the societies or youngsters might i add who consume these media into self diagnosing instead of seeking a psychologist.
posting about having mental illness on social media when you aren't diagnosed is really dangerous. imagine how this have an affect on those who are actually diagnosed with the mental illness.
you aren't depressed because you have one bad day. you don't have anxiety just because you have stage fright. you don't have ocd just because you like things to be perfect and in order. you aren't bipolar because sometimes you feel happy and sad at the same time.
these conditions are extremely serious and not something to be taken lightly and not for the purpose of gaining popularity on social media. please don't normalize talking about mental health this way.
don't let the media tell you this, don't believe everything the media says, don't take quizzes and self diagnose yourself. if you believe that you might have a problem, don't go on and open quizzes online instead seek professional help, go see a psychologist or therapist.
by romanticizing mental health or glorifying it, you are doing a disservice and belittling the experiences felt by people who are actually diagnosed with mental illness.
there are people out there who genuinely battle these conditions every day and who struggle to overcome their overwhelming problems alongside the stigma for people with mental health issues. For them, there’s nothing romantic at all about their suffering.
we can't control other people's actions, we can't stop them from self-diagnosing themselves, we can't stop the society from romanticizing it as there continues to be a rise in that. but one thing we can do and that is one thing we can do controlling our own thoughts and actions.
end of thread.
