Coming from a society where mental health is not just a stigma but talking about it is a Taboo and literally people try their best to hide it from society; it's not only hard but quite impossible to talk openly and make awareness about mental health.
I'm glad, the Healthy Bees community make this prompt so at least the people of Hive can find a safe space to talk about it openly and learn.
I have a long battle with depression, anxiety, and stress management. I still didn't win but learned the technique of the battle. Fortunately, it is not that severe that needs medical attention. But I sure needed counseling which I didn't and can't get because of social stigma.
I have shared in some of my early posts about my mental health condition, and just a few days ago talked about how mental health needs to be discussed more. Now, this contest is a perfect place to talk more about it.
The first thing we need as a society to talk about mental health is creating a space to talk freely about our emotions and feelings. That's blank in my society. Not only here but the whole Asian region is suffering from this.
The Silence of the society
In my culture, emotional suffering means we need to deal with the pain in silence. People say, 'Get over it', 'you are causing a drama out of nothing', 'there are people who are struggling more than you', and whatnot.
Even I have heard about this so many times that my emotions are all made up and not valid. So people choose to be silent.
Be Tough
We are often taught to be strong and not cry. We can't talk about our true emotions and any issues with our parents or with our partners. People fear getting tagged as Crazy and choose to pretend and mask their emotions.
Family pressure
You may think that family will come first when we need help. But when it comes to any mental health issues, the family is the one who will point the finger.
It's hard to find any family who supports their members during this hardship. They don't try to recognize in a fear that this will make things worse.
Religious misconception
Often people think that those who have a strong faith would never feel depressed. If anyone asks for help that means they are not faithful and a shameful act.
Who would take this judgment on top of their depression?
My journey
When I was in my 'down time', was not sure how to get help; I used to read a lot about mental health to self-help. I couldn't talk about it with anyone and asking for professional help is still not possible for me.
But what I learned is that we need to be aware first and then talk about it with our closest one, the person who will listen and would probably help us. There's nothing wrong in asking for help.
Now, after almost 5 years, I can safely say that I can talk about my sleepless nights openly, I can share how I sometimes feel crazy in my head, and even my faith sometimes doesn't help me to stay strong and not feel anxious about things.
My learning helped me a lot to make myself aware. I believe, this is what we need first to remove the stigma and barrier of the society, we need to make ourselves aware first and then spread the knowledge.
Your @peacefulsoul
Hi @peacefulsoul. With your publication, you express to us your expanded gallantry and your inner strength to overcome the stigmas that plague these nosological entities. And even though prejudices are still present in various scenarios, you have shown us with your experience, that inner strength is insurmountable. You open the doors of your life, without any shyness, to be an example of virtue, constancy, and self-esteem, to show others who are in a similar situation that it is possible to come out of the shadows. My admiration for your effort and in which there is no purpose of surrender. Life, despite its nuances, is beautiful and must be enjoyed. You have navigated among adversities, but in spite of it, with will and manifest decision you have seen the light. Feel free to share whatever you wish, you contribute to collective learning, and do it whenever you want. I have had the opportunity to go through your writings, so I have been getting to know you in your virtues. Your participation continually releases trails of goodness and teachings lived but above all felt from the depths of your ipseity. We remain in contact, health and wellness! !LUV
marilour
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Very grateful for the support, my gratitude. Health and well-being !LUV
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That's the inspirational words I needed to hear today. Sometimes it feels a little heavy to deal with so many things at once. But this is life and we have to move on even if we are depressed and society doesn't care about us.
It should always start with the self, the education, the awareness, and the change that comes with us.
Thanks for your meaningful response, it means a lot.
Greetings @peacefulsoul, my gratitude for your heartfelt words, which add reflections and considerations. Societies as social ecosystems are diverse and heterogeneous. In particular, this condition seems great to me, because it allows me to satisfy all tastes, generating the opportunity to reconcile with those who vibrate in my tune, with whom I can grow and evolve in synergy. With this, I want to tell you that we do not fit in all places, nor with all people, each one of us carries our imprints, those that make us particular. When we insist on areas that do not correspond to us, we are generating heaviness, disappointment, and fertilizing negativity. It is as if we were trying to insert a square in the space of a circle. It is our task to build our balance, sharpening our senses to perceive affinities and correlations, and to identify where to withdraw from, discarding, letting go, and letting go, to live. Health and wellness !LUV #healthy-bees
marilour
(1/10) sent you LUV. | tools | discord | community | HiveWiki | <>< daily@peacefulsoul, @marilour
Truly, we don't fit it all places and there's no single recipe to feel better. Rather, we should focus on what makes us feel better and gradually make our own safe space. Thanks a lot for your valuable opinion.
(5/10) sent you LUV. | tools | discord | community | HiveWiki | <>< daily@peacefulsoul, @marilour
Tap the precise keys here. Mental health is a taboo in all the societies I know, exactly for the reasons you list here. Only those who have gone through a real depression or have had real anxiety can understand what it is. It is important that we accept this so that we can move forward without that burden. We are stronger than we think, I'm glad you've found a way to face your process. Thanks for sharing this.
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That's true. Only those who have gone through this will understand, others will still turn their nose up. We need to create a safe space and spread awareness.
Thanks a lot for your curation support. I didn't know about liotes until now, I will check and cast my vote. Thanks.
The misunderstanding of the family is the hardest part, at least in my experience. But we must also understand that it is their way of trying to help because they love us. I will be more aware of this community, thanks to your post I know about this space.
I understand that. They want to see us strong. I wish we would be the ones to give our hands to those who need them.
Thanks for your response.
This is so true.
Society has played its part well enough in this stigmatisation. It has made it seem like a taboo as you've said, or even a weakness.
I'm realising how family unknowingly places this pressure on the victims, that they suffer it silently. It was nice of you sharing this.
The world is progressing and we are ignoring mental health more, while it should be the opposite. I hope we can make a difference.
Yeah, hope we can.
I like how you think of it - just because other people are going through what you’re going through as well is no basis to disregard the fact that people suffering from mental health issues are in pain or discomfort. Circumstances are different for everyone, so perhaps, although there are multitudes of people experiencing what you’re experiencing differences such as availability of emotional support from friends and time, finances, and a lot of other things introduce nuances that can not be ignored.
I also strongly agree with the point about religious misconceptions. I was scrolling Twitter a few days ago when I came across a post that basically suggested that if you do x and y and z (3 things), you can’t be depressed. I was like “Lol right”. I wish there was a one size fits all recipe for these types of things, but the truth is that there isn’t, and that is owing to our individual differences and the things that affect our lives.
I 100% agree with you. There's no recipe to feel better. A single event makes an impact on our lives; some take it lightly, and some others take time to deal with it.
I have seen people caught saying, "Hah! It's not a big deal, we have been through much more." It pisses me off so much.
That's why compassion and empathy are needed.
Thanks for reading and sharing your valuable opinion.
Thank you for sharing this.
It takes so much strength to reflect on such a journey and to open up about it.
You're absolutely right, awareness is such a crucial first step, both for ourselves and for breaking the stigma around mental health.
It's inspiring to see how far you've come in being able to talk about your experiences and feeling.
Your story will surely encourage others who might be struggling in silence to take that first step too.
Keep going, you're doing amazing.
!ALIVE
!HOPE
Thanks a lot for reading. It's true, talking about my condition openly was not easy. But now when I look back, I feel like I should started early because it would have helped to to overcome my fear of being tagged.
But I did it, even if it took some time. Anyone who is going through something and needs help knows that it's okay to feel crazy and okay to reach for help. Thanks again for sharing your valuable opinion.