World Mental Health Day

I may be wrong, frequently am, but I don’t think that there are many of us who, at one time, have not suffered, or are not suffering from a mental health issue.

You see Mental Health has been vilified over many long years, and people were, and still are afraid to speak up and seek help.
The things that used to happen to people who were deemed to have mental health issues were horrendous. Pretty much all of the things that you can do wrong to another person.

Thankfully, things have moved on and we don’t have to lock people away, electrocute them, treat them badly. That doesn’t mean that we have got things right though.

There is still a stigma attached to mental health. We still see it as a bad thing, one where people shouldn’t talk about it out loud for fear of judgement. That is so wrong.

Men, in particular, are awful about talking through their feelings. It’s changing, but it’s still a slow process.
Women are much better at it, mainly because there seems to be a better support network (of friends), but men can have just the same support network if they’d only open up.

I get it though. It’s not easy, man or woman to tell people that you are struggling. That you feel you cannot cope. That you are lost and can’t find a way out of the world you now find yourself in.

On the other side, when we ask people ‘how are you?’, do we genuinely mean it? Is it just a throw away question and one that we’re really not interested in?

Here’s something that you can try the next time you’re with a friend you are worried about.
Ask the same ‘how are you?’ question then wait. Let them answer with the ‘fine/good/ok’ answer you’re expecting. Then ask the same question again, but this time really mean it. And wait. Let them talk. You may be surprised at the answer you get.

On World Mental Health Day, make the time to speak to a friend and ask them how they are? REALLY ask them. And let them answer. YOU might be the person they’ve been waiting for to open up to.
Don’t Judge. Don’t give your opinion. Validate what they tell you. Help if you can just by being an ear.