Let’s Talk About Mental Health

Mental illnesses are more common than you may think, and it needs to be discussed.

Revolutionary fashionista, Kate Spade, was found dead Tuesday night in her New York apartment in what appears to have been a suicide, leaving behind an eleven-year-old daughter and millions of devastated friends, family, and fans across the world.

At this same time as the world processes this tragedy, Netflix Original, 13 Reasons Why, has been renewed for a third season even after the show has been condemned by mental health professionals and those struggling with mental illnesses for its glorification and gross simplification of complex issues such as sexual assault, depression, anxiety, LGBT issues, and suicide.

With these events in the forefront of everyone’s minds at the moment, it is imperative that we discuss the complexities of mental illness and break down the stigma which surrounds these topics today.

Mental Health is often more complex than it is made out in shows like 13 Reasons Why and Grey’s Anatomy. In fact, mental illness is different for every single person that experiences it, and this is mostly due to the unique chemical compositions of the brain that each person possesses. With that being said, it is also very rare that singular events can be pin-pointed as exact causes of mental illness, usually, in cases of depression, anxiety, OCD, and bipolar disorder, brain chemistry plays a more important role in causation.

For these reasons, if you suffer from mental illness or are struggling with your mental health it is important to seek out help from respected, reliable sources, such as the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), the National Suicide Prevention Hotline (1-800-273-8255),  or seek out help with a therapist or other professional by talking to your doctor or using sites like Psychology Today to locate one.