I overheard someone say that, “mental health is the new trend.” It could definitely be up for interpertation but to me, she said it in the way that a fashion reporter would say, “Flare jeans are the new thing”. I’m not even sure if flare jeans are back in now but that’s how she said it. I peeped a bit of sarcasm in her tone when she said it. Surely I can see why she said it. It’s all over social media and the news. Schools are even incorporating mental health into their curriculums. I think that when it comes to mental health people are becoming more aware of their shit and accepting the responsibility, the process of healing. People are fighting for their own sanity, their peace in a way that many years ago haven’t. Though people may be ashamed to feel all of these not so pretty emotions, they are not ashamed to speak about how they are dealing with depression, anxiety or having had sucidial thoughts. They are speaking up and shining light on it and by speaking up, it allows others to heal from their own illnesses. People are talking about it. Keyword: TALKING and recognizing their trauma and working hard to remove generational trauma. It’s not taboo these days for someone to see a therapist and I love that for us.

Everyone’s battle with mental illness is surely different. It’s truly a personal journey, my journey may be different than yours but by us having discussions about mental health, we are opening ourselves up to connecting and healing others.

I understand that people may not speak up about their thoughts or feelings because they assume that they would appear to seem weak or too vulnerable. Trust me, I know that feeling all too well. That was me BEFORE therapy but there is healing in talking about it. I don’t want us to romanticize mental illness because there’s nothing romantic about those not so pretty thoughts or feelings. I just want us to bring awareness to it. Can we continue to normalize opening up about our own battles? Let’s not be silent any more about the not so pretty thoughts the deep dark ugly battles that cause us to lose sleep. People need to hear it. We also need to be a listener for others. Talking about these things not only helps others, but it will help the person going through it. Let’s normalize not being silent about our battles. We can romanticze the healing process though, because it feels good to take care of ourselves, set boundaries and do the things that help us have a peace of mind. We are our own advocates.

When I am catching up with a friend or family member I stop and ask them, “How are you? Like..how are you really?” Asking this question is tricky. This is such a surface level question because we can ask anyone and they would give you a “well thanks” that they aren’t connected to, but when you really focus on that question, it really forces the person being asked to sigh and let things out. This is why I love asking this question. You don’t know what people are holding in.

I share this with you to say that I hope that we continue to shine light on mental health years from now . I think by us really bringing awareness to this issue, we are healing the next generations to come. Let’s continue to do the work not only for ourselves, but for others. Sending love and light to all of you.