Content warning: contains images of comments from people who trivialize mental health concerns

Even though 5% (43.8 million people) of adults experience a mental illness in any given year, many don’t seek help. This is perhaps unsurprising as we live in a world where people regularly make comments like this:

And this:

And this:

In the great abyss of the internet, there seems to be a lack of compassion and validation for others (that is an understatement, I know), particularly when it comes to bridging the gap between validation and seeking mental health care. In a world already full of stigma surrounding mental health challenges and care, we have the additional challenge of comments like this:

What makes mental health unique is that people feel like they can force themselves to feel better through sheer determination. After all, if feeling bad is in your head, feeling better must also be something you can force your thoughts into. You just need to talk about it, or go on a walk, or “get out of your head” (whatever that means), right?

In reality, that leaves millions of people who are struggling with mental health-related ailments feeling like they’re broken and not needed in society since their illnesses are not the kind that will just go away with some travel or fresh air.

In my Psychology 101 class in college, the professor (a therapist herself) asked whether mental health professionals were needed. It wasn't long before someone raised their hand and said: “No, because if you have a good friend, they will listen, let you vent and then you feel better.”

This kind of thinking is still prevalent today and is not only inaccurate but dangerous. It is estimated that only 1 in 27 people receive the mental health care they need. Yes, sometimes talking with a friend can ease temporary distress, but I think we can all agree our friends are likely ill-equipped to hear about suicidal ideation or other symptoms.

If you are not a mental health professional, but, and this is important, you WANT to help others, without overstepping your boundaries or pretending to be a professional, you can do so by sharing your experience—making others feel less alone and heard, which eventually, makes more people comfortable with talking to a professional in the mental health field. An advocate is the stopgap, the bridge for people going from “Mental health is all just in your head” to “Mental health care is just as important to our well-being as our physical health”. Programs such as Mental Health First Aid or No Stigmas Ally training can help you ensure you know where your boundaries are, and how to help others safely.

Mental Health discussion is not only for professionals and ensuring that there is no gatekeeping in the matter can help more people find their way to a healthier state.