Paulina-Speech

English Group Project: Group 1 - Speech

Mental illnesses. It’s real. It’s not a fictional story. It’s fascinating that the cry for more awareness about mental illness would tug us to a situation when people would start romanticizing with the problem itself.

Let’s take an example; Romeo and Juliet. The suicide happened between two lovers, it was expected, it was expected that you would see how overpowered by love Romeo had become that he could not imagine his life without the “apple of his eye”. But what about real life? What about when we romanticize real suicides from real people?

Being depressed, suffering from anxiety, having a bipolar disorder and even blading your arm has emerged to become unique; art. Slashes that marked your skin is considered art. A fine masterpiece done by a blade dragged across your skin. Social media is overflowing with posts about teens posing with the hashtag “thinspo” as if not eating a meal for a week is a wonderful thing; as if to suggest not eating is the answer to your happily ever after. Panic attacks? Anxiety? Oh! How I love feeling so overwhelmed my body shuts down and I feel out of control. Stayed up till 5 AM for that essay? Bet you struggle with insomnia. You’re depressed? Cute! Those cuts are so beautiful; I wish I could have my body decorated like you!

I hope that somewhere in your mind a little voice screamed “How can you say that?!”. However, this is the reality of this generation. It’s become a culture, a sick and toxic culture where seeking attention is a drug, songs about depression and sadness are so hauntingly beautiful that a person would idolize to be in that position. A culture where having mental illness makes you special, it sets you away from the crowd, where reading any kind of crappy quotation on a beautiful picture is so life changingly inspiring.

Having mental illness is not cool. It shouldn’t be a trend nor should it be something a person should want to have. Mental illness is serious. You don’t have an anxiety disorder because you have stage fright. You aren’t depressed because people don’t respond to your messages. You aren’t bipolar because watching a movie is making you feel happy and sad at the same time. These conditions are serious. 6.7 percent (more than 16 million) of the people in America are affected by mental disorder. Only a third of those suffering from severe illness will seek treatment. Only a third. Don’t let the internet diagnose you. Those online quizzes aren’t medical professionals with the degree required to diagnose a person with a type of disease.

Let’s not trivialize mental illness.

If you sincerely think you are suffering, stop sharing your life stories on your social media posts. Seek professional help. Get diagnosed by someone qualified.

For the rest. Don’t label yourself as mentally ill; it doesn’t make you unique, it doesn’t amp your status. There are millions of other people who really do suffer; people who battle against themselves, people who want to feel normal again. People who have lost feeling. There’s nothing romantic about it. Mental illness is not an aesthetic, they’re tears, trauma, medications, suicidal thoughts and self destruction. They’re losing their life.

Pain doesn’t equate to pretty. Pain equates to pain.

Please stop invalidating a real illness just because you want to be “on trend”

Stop romanticizing things that hurt the most.

It’s all fun and games until it strikes you out too.

#newyear #resolutions #old