The Question We Ignore: Mental Health Awareness

I'm sure we've all been asked the question when we were younger, “If all of your friends were to jump off a bridge, would you too?” Hearing this question come from my mom one day on the way back from school was so odd to me. I thought it was so weird and randomly prompted. I said what I thought to be the obvious answer, no, and then later followed up with my own question: Why? Why are kids asked such a gruesome question every day, and what does their answer reveal about them?

I later found out that this simple yes-or-no answer was intended to imply the mental health state that we were in as kids. But I mean, come on, how many of us actually answered truthfully? And if so, what were our parents supposed to do if they heard a response they didn't like?

Mental health can be described as a person's emotional, psychological, and social well-being, affecting how they think, feel, behave, and handle everyday life. Incidents of mental illness often get ignored due to people neglecting treatment for the disorder. There isn't a major class revolving around mental health that every human is required to take. At best, flyers are posted up in school hallways or work offices that depict a frowning person with “You aren't alone, call this number to seek help” at the bottom. We are told to be aware of signs of poor mental health, but what are they? And what can we do to stop the deterioration?

Society's normalization of asking the question but never acting on one's response has led to a worldwide downplay of the severity of mental health issues.

As mentioned before, struggling with mental health can profoundly affect a person's overall well-being. People who struggle with mental health can also struggle with managing their emotions, learning new topics, social isolation, and more. Our mental health shapes our social relationships, daily functioning, and physical health. Doctors emphasize the importance of caring for one's own mental health.

Signs that you or someone you might know is facing challenges in their mental well-being include sleeping problems, emotional outbursts, being more silent than usual, or substance abuse. If this frequently asked question were given to all of us as children, then I'd assume that having a mental illness is more common than society recognizes it to be.

According to Jean Holthaus, struggling with mental health is a very common issue faced by many. In the article “The Importance of Mental Health Awareness,” Jean Holthaus states, “Mental Illness affects 19% of the adult population, 46% of teenagers, and 13% of children each year” (Holthaus 1). When I first read Holthaus' article, I was in shock. I, along with the majority of my classmates, fall under the teenage age range, meaning that out of 100 students within my grade, it is possible that 46 of them experience a mental health condition.

My realization of how closely linked I could be to someone who lives with a mental illness prompted me to do more research into the different types. Some illnesses consist of anxiety, PTSD, depression, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, and more.

After gaining a greater understanding of what mental health truly is, I also began to see why society neglected to educate everyone more on this matter. With there being article after article about a new physical disease storming a town, or the life expectancy age diminishing each year, people have forgotten about a condition that so many of us suffer from. Our decision to overlook such an intense condition that is commonly experienced by people each day has allowed for a negative connotation to grow whenever the mere thought of someone expressing their frustration is brought up.

The truth is that society doesn't know what to do when responding with a yes to the commonly asked question. Our default reply is to acknowledge it and move on.

But clearly, this hasn't been working.

The posters have done nothing but add fuel to the fire of how mental health is perceived. I want to have an impact on our world that leaves a positive mark, as I'm sure many of us do, and I believe that it starts from within.

So, to answer the question of what we can do to not only raise awareness of mental health but also improve it, there are small, simple habits. Conveying a mindful and accepting persona for those around us, constantly educating ourselves on how mental health is taught in today's standards, and advocating for mental health to gain an equal amount of attention that other illnesses receive all help push against the conformative agenda of diminishing the representation mental health deserves.

So the next time you see a poster on your school walls or office bathrooms, don't forget that awareness means nothing without action. Real change begins when we choose to listen, respond, and care beyond the question.

Works Cited

Staff, P. R. (2023, October 10). “The importance of mental health awareness.” Pine Rest Newsroom. https://www.pinerest.org/newsroom/articles/mental-health-awareness-blog/