Listen Up, Speak Up

People having mental health concerns about themselves tend to stay silent about their thoughts and experiences. They tend to be enclosed within that box that encapsulates them for as long as they could remember. People experiencing this needs a trusted support system for them to see the light, a light of hope that when everything is somewhat devouring or overwhelming there are people who will be there during those times.

Talking to someone who has a huge amount of wisdom can have a big impact on your mindset. It’s in those moments when you’re having a discourse with someone which in return will give you a fresh perspective, a new opinion, which makes you think twice. Opening up a conversation with someone in regards to your own mental health takes courage to do, but when you do, things will get better. Going beyond our box, freeing ourselves from that cage that chains us will release all that pain, guilt, shame; cause if you do not those thoughts will eventually consume you, change you, shape you, or mold you until there is nothing left from your original self. Unhealthy thoughts will just hold us back. It stops you from developing healthy relationships and giving you a false judgment about your self-worth have no value.

However, if you start a conversation. You are creating a gateway to accept healthy, positive, and real thoughts about yourself. You allow yourselves to express how you truly feel and it gives others a chance to help you by guiding you through the difficult times. You allow yourself to look back at you in retrospect, reflecting, and acknowledging what you did wrong, accept the things you had no control over and look at how you'll go about fixing yourself. Until you start that conversation, purgatory is your domicile, no destination, just plain field.

One of the articles I have read says that the way we talk about physical health compared to mental health greatly differs. He states that “For example, most people with a bad back wouldn’t feel uncomfortable saying they can’t lift something because it might hurt them further. But when it comes to mental health, it can be daunting to say you need to sit out on something because it could cause you further distress.” That is why proper conversation is vital.

We can learn from mental health even though we never had mental health problems. We should remember, a conversation is a process of giving and taking information, such that we can learn from the experiences of others while others also learn from you. even if those experiences are not the best that we heard, J.K. Rowling once said,

"There is plenty to be learned even from a bad teacher: what not to do, how not to be."

Listening to someone talk about their experiences might aid you when it comes to supporting others. Talking now might even help you to identify if you, or a loved one, need support in the future. We can’t all know everything, but every conversation we have has the power to broaden our understanding.

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REFERENCES:

Tom (2021). We can all learn something from talking about mental health. Personal Stories. Retrieved from https://www.time-to-change.org.uk/blog/we-can-all-learn-something-talking-about-mental-health

Anonymous (2015). Things are getting better after I started the conversation about mental health. Personal Stories. Retrieved from https://www.time-to-change.org.uk/blog/things-are-getting-better-after-i-started-conversation-about-mental-health