Counseling: The Importance of Normalizing Care for Mental Illness Worldwide
Photo by Iva Rajović on Unsplash
“She’s seeing a counselor. What’s wrong with her?”
“Psychs are for crazy people.”
When I was growing up, that’s what I thought. That’s what I believed. I didn’t know anyone who was seeing a psychologist or counselor except my friend from school who had anorexia, that woman who was experiencing panic attacks due to deep loss and grief, that man who washed his hands incessantly.
Counselors, psychologists, psychiatrists, therapists—aren’t those only for people who need serious help?
If you are seeing one, you had better not tell anyone. If you are taking antidepressants, you better hide them. Stay silent. Anyone who discovers your secret might think you are going out of your mind.
What if I lose my job? What if people start looking at me strangely? What if people start gossiping about me and my problems?
Fear of judgment, discrimination, and shame often keep people from seeking help. In some cultures that are based on a system of honor and shame, the stigma of mental health can keep many people alone, silent, and suffering in the dark. Perhaps this is why “every year, 703,000 people” lose their lives to suicide, according to the World Health Organization.
According to United for Global Mental Health, “Around the world, two in three people won’t get any treatment for their mental ill health. Because of a lack of funding, as well as stigma and discrimination around mental health conditions globally, most of the two billion people who will have a mental health issue in their lifetimes will have no support.”
Mental Health—A Global Crisis
We may have a serious problem on our hands.
Mental health issues are widespread, costing the world 2.5 trillion dollars per year. Yet, there’s a stigma attached to it—all aspects of it: prevention, diagnosis, care.
In the video, “Why is it Taboo to Talk About Mental Health?” a number of people who suffer from mental health illnesses were interviewed.
Here’s what some of them had to say . . .
“I still hid it from some people because I didn’t want people to treat me like I was weak.”
“You develop this whole, ‘Yeah, I’m fine. Everything’s great,’ because it wasn’t talked about then.”
“I was upset, crying, and even sad, and you know . . . ‘smile,’ ‘smile.’”
“You’re just making this up because you don’t want to work.”
“Growing up, you don’t really talk about it. There’s a lot of stigma around mental health. Numerous times, you try to voice what you feel, and it’s almost dismissed.”
“If you go to therapy, you’re crazy. There must be something wrong with you . . . you just have to be strong and deal with it on your own.”
“No, no, this isn’t a thing. This doesn’t happen to us.”
“Dealing with something like this when you’re so afraid to be vocal about it, you feel like there’s something wrong with you.”
As you listen and read these quotes, consider what ideas resonate with you or sound familiar. What unhelpful or unhealthy mentalities can you identify that need to change in order to normalize mental health around the world?
Breaking the Stigma
Around the world, one in four of us will suffer from a mental health condition at some point in our life.
It’s not unusual. It’s not uncommon.
We had better get used to hearing about it. We had better get used to talking about it.
If we don’t, that suicide statistic might become even more alarming.
The first step is to talk about it, raise awareness, bring it to light, open the secret closet.
The World Health Organization (WHO) introduced World Mental Health Day in 2013, observed every year on October 10 “with the overall objective of raising awareness of mental health issues around the world and mobilizing efforts in support of mental health.”
In the past, the WHO has addressed themes such as mental health for the elderly, dignity in mental health, schizophrenia, suicide prevention, mental health in the workplace, and mental health for young people.
The 2020 campaign theme was “increased investment in mental health,” considering the tremendous impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the world’s mental health.
The 2023 Mental Health Day campaign declared mental health as a basic human right.
“Mental health is a basic human right for all people. Everyone, whoever and wherever they are, has a right to the highest attainable standard of mental health. This includes the right to be protected from mental health risks, the right to available, accessible, acceptable, and good quality care, and the right to liberty, independence and inclusion in the community.”
Feature filmmakers have also been trying for decades to talk about mental illness on the big screen. Major motion pictures such as “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” “A Beautiful Mind,” “Patch Adams,” “Inside Out,” or “Turtles All the Way Down,” among many others, have portrayed the lives of those with mental health issues in an attempt to bring it out of hiding and talk about it openly.
In addition to movies, many celebrities such as actors, musicians, athletes, and authors have publicly talked about their personal mental health challenges. They are setting an excellent example for the rest of us to openly talk about our own issues. The long list includes Abraham Lincoln, Ludwig van Beethoven, Winston Churchill, Carrie Fisher, and Janet Jackson, among many others. A more recent example is when Olympic gymnast, Simone Biles, shared publicly about her mental strain and trauma.
Schools are also on the frontlines and are often the first to recognize a mental health issue in children and adolescents. Many schools around the world are addressing mental health more openly than ever and are providing individual and group counseling, evaluation and assessment, crisis prevention and response such as suicide assessment and child maltreatment, violence prevention and intervention. Most children—up to three quarters—who are receiving professional care for a mental health problem are obtaining those services through school-based programs.
General medical doctors are now also conducting basic mental health screenings in order to refer patients to service providers as needs arise.
With suicide being the second leading cause of death among 15- to 29-year-olds, we must bring mental health issues out into the light before they kill more people.
“Every 40 seconds someone dies by suicide.”
It doesn’t matter where you live, what your age is, or what culture you carry, those isolated and suffering can no longer remain stuck in the darkness of taboo, stigma, and shame.
We need to see mental health issues for what they are—real. We cannot avoid them nor hide them. We have to change the way we think about mental health.
A New Mindset
“Mental health can affect you, me, or anyone. We need a new mindset.”
Let’s start right here. Let’s talk about it—openly and honestly.
Here’s the truth: Seeing a counselor doesn’t mean you are losing your mind. Seeing a psychiatrist doesn’t mean you are crazy.
Mental health is a real part of who we are as people.
Just like we can sometimes fall ill and our physical health is affected, we can also become sick mentally. There’s nothing to be ashamed of. Let’s take the first step to get healthy and get help if we need it. Let’s be there to listen well to friends and family who may be alone and suffering from mental illness. Let’s encourage them and help them to find the support and resources they need.
See Beyond wants to come alongside you on this journey. No one should walk alone. Please contact us today. Even if you cannot meet with a counselor in person, we have many online and virtual counseling options.
Reflection question: “How could counseling positively impact your mental health or the mental health of a friend or a family member? What barriers do you feel to utilizing counseling services?"