As students all around the world step into May, a variety of commitments and events begin to flood their calendars, but there is one event that means more than just a day on a calendar–Mental Health Awareness Month.
May serves as a time to look after those who may be struggling to reach out and seek help, and to lend a shoulder to someone who may need it most. Millions of people across the globe fight a multitude of silent battles that seem impossible to win, and May serves as a time to break the silence and seek help.
The Stigma Behind Mental Health
When going through a silent mental battle, many people fear the thought of reaching out, and they often shy away from seeking help. The weight of depression, anxiety, and mental health can be daunting, but the fear of judgment and rejection proves to keep people from getting the help that they need to get better. In our culture, we are taught to mask our emotions because there is always someone who is going through a tougher battle. Society views seeking help as weakness, and we live in a world where vulnerability is seen as a flaw.
As a society, we are subconsciously trained to think that we must cope with our struggles alone so that we don’t place a burden on the people around us, but this mentality deems to be incredibly flawed, and it forces people to keep their darkest feelings inside until they simply cannot bear them any longer.
The truth is that reaching out to someone you trust does not represent weakness. That is one of the most courageous things one can do. This act of bravery shows that you have enough self-awareness to know that you are not okay, and you need to do something about it to move forward. Being aware of your emotions proves to be an important factor when navigating your mental health.
The Flawed Statistics
Every year, we hear the statistics. 1 in 8 people live with some form of mental illness, and 720,000 of these people end up committing suicide every year. These numbers give us a general idea of the struggles of the people around us, but they don’t even come close to truly narrating the pain behind these numbers. These people are human, and their stories deserve to be heard and told.
Statistics, when used incorrectly, do nothing but give us a number. They fail to capture the experiences that go behind the numbers. Statistics do not capture the mental breakdowns, the trauma, and the breaking point that led each of these poor souls to choose to end their own lives.
Whenever we solely rely on statistics, we unintentionally disregard the complexity of the battles that the people behind the numbers are facing. These numbers don’t tell us how this pain impacted the people’s families, friends, and coworkers. They don’t show us the excruciating pain that grief leaves loved ones with.
There Is Hope
Behind the feeling of isolation, loneliness, and depression, hope is always there. Progress is not linear, but little progress every day is better than none. If you or a loved one ever finds themselves battling with their mental well-being, there is refuge and comfort found in coping mechanisms.
The most crucial thing to have when you are struggling is a support system– someone you can lean on when the weight of life gets too heavy. Expressing your emotions in the form of words allows you to process them, which in turn enables you to move forward. When you open up about how you are feeling, you can gain a new perspective from someone else, and this may help release the tension and pain you are feeling.
Another method to ease your anxiety and mental health is to practice mindfulness. Mindfulness means living in the moment rather than hyper-fixating on the past or mindlessly worrying about the future. One way to practice mindfulness is through breathing exercises. Practice breathing in for seven seconds, holding that breath for another seven seconds, and finally exhaling for seven seconds. This technique, although simple, allows you to regulate your breathing, which will, in turn, calm your mind.
Sensory grounding is another helpful technique when reducing stress and panic. When you find yourself beginning to spiral, take a second and observe your surroundings. Name 5 things you can see, 4 things you can touch, 3 things you can hear, 2 things you can smell, and 1 thing you can taste.
You Are Enough
In a world that proves to be incredibly demanding and pressure-filled, remember that you are right where you need to be. Your achievements, productivity, and the things you do for others do not define who you are. Your value is not solely reliant on the things you have done or the way you fit into the mold that the world wants you to.
It’s okay to rest, pause, rewind, and it’s okay to not be okay. Strength is truly found in acknowledging when you need a break.
You are enough, and you always will be.
