Talking About Mental Health and Removing Stigma

As we age, our brains weaken. We lose a bit of their edge. We sometimes forget things, forget things easily. And as our memories weaken, too, so do our skills at giving meaning to life’s events. When we’re younger, we have a lot of energy and a lot to say. As we get older, our brains weaken and our memory capacities weaken with them. But some people can still manage to talk about their problems even when they’re feeling them even though they feel like they might have nothing to say. That’s amazing! And it’s something that anyone can do if they just practice saying “no” occasionally instead of saying “yes” all the time. That’s what this article is about how to do anyway: ways to talk to people about mental health without sounding like you’re talking down to them or trying to guilt them into agreeing with you. 

What Is Talking About Mental Well Being?

The basic idea of talking about mental well being is that you say something to someone and then have them think about it and then talk about it. When you talk about mental well being, you don’t just say “yes” or “no” or “maybe.” You say things like “I think about things like this everyday.” Or you might say, “I need help understanding things like this because I don’t know how to.” Or you might say, “I think about ways that people with mental issues are different from others and that it’s important to respect those differences.” People with mental issues might not even realize they have them because their atmosphere is so much better than average—people with mental illness issues don’t usually feel self-conscious or ashamed about it—and they might even forget they have it when they come out of the house. When someone you know has a mental illness issue, you want to make sure you talk to them about it so they don’t forget. You don’t want to be a doctor who told a person with a mental illness that they didn’t have a disease but instead a choice between a life of “if they want to stay in denial” or a life of “yesterday’s news” and a future where people with mental issues can’t keep to themselves. That’s not helpful. It’s not a solution. You want to help them understand how their mental health is affected by things and what they can do about it so they don’t end up like some of the people in this article who end up feeling like they don’t have anything to say. You want to be the voice of reason and the voice of experience.

In case you’re wondering what that means, this is what namings about mental well being: Your mind gives you stories. Your mind makes plans. Your mind creates images. Your mind projects things. And when you’re young and old, you learn to rely on these natural abilities to a greater or lesser extent. But as you get older, you lose some of these skills, and it’s important to get back to basics and the basics fast so you can still have those skills when you’re in your 30s or 40s.

How to Talk to a Person With a Mental Illness Issue

How do you talk to people about their mental well being? If you don’t know anyone with a mental issue, you can talk to friends and family members. If you have a mental well being issue, though, you can also go to a doctor. And even when you see a doctor, they might not know the answers to your questions or they might not want to hear them. Or they might be afraid to say them or they might just be in shock or denial when they read your story.

There’s no perfect way to talk to someone about your mental health, but there are ways to talk that might work best for you. You can talk to a doctor, you can talk to a friend, or you can speak to a therapist. All of these methods have their pros and cons, but the chats you have with a therapist or a client might be the best chance you have to get the information you need and help you process things more effectively. They might also be the only way you can get the support and reassurance you need that might help you get through rough times ahead.

When you have a mental problem, you’ve probably tried talking about it to your friends and family members. But in a crisis, when you can’t talk to anyone about it, you might have to go through this process of talking to yourself. And it might help if you could talk to your therapist too, because they could help you process things more effectively too. So, if you’re ready to talk, try talking to yourself. It might be the only way you can get a message across to yourself and let the chips fall where they may.

Mental health is a serious issue that needs open discussion and encouragement to seek treatments. If not taken seriously, this can create a society of mentally unstable individuals. With community and family support, we can create a healthy society.