Mental illness isn’t anything new, it has been around for millennia. And yet, we still find ourselves in a society where mental illness can be disregarded. While there are many ways to help the mentally ill community, an easy first step is to help raise awareness, But what does raising awareness even mean?
Raising Awareness
Scrolling through your social media feed, you may have people who are posting a copy and pasted post to raise awareness for some illness. While this is great for people who have never heard of the illness and are introduced to a new thing, this doesn’t really do too much for the community.
When you raise awareness for mental health, the actions you take should have the purpose of making life easier for those with mental illness, so they are given fair opportunity to heal and rejoin society as healthy people. Raising awareness effectively is doing something like raising money for a cause and explaining the cause to the donors or giving a free lecture on how to help loved ones with mental illness.
There are ways that you can help raise awareness without renting out an auditorium for a lecture or going door to door asking for money, here are three simple ways you can effectively help raise awareness for mental health.
- Educate Yourself
One of the best ways you can spread awareness on a subject is to be well educated on it. Reading blogs from people who suffer from a mental illness is a great way to get inside the mind of someone who is hurting giving you a window into a reality that doesn’t match your own.
Learning about the science behind an illness can be beneficial, helping to give you a contagious patience. By understanding the issues people with mental illness deal with on a daily basis, you have a better chance at rallying in more people to support the cause.
- Listen
It is likely you know someone with a mental health issue or you have a mental health issue. If you know someone, listen to what they have to say. You don’t have to give them advice (unless they ask for it), just be an ear and hear what they have to say. See who they are passed their inner turmoil. Even if you don’t fully understand what they are going through, it is likely you have felt some of the emotions they explain at one point in your life and can find a way to relate to how they feel.
If you are someone with a mental health issue and you are wanting to raise awareness, talk to the people who don’t understand you. Listen to the questions they have and try not to get defensive. Which is a lot easier said than done but keeping in mind that they are trying to understand may be able to help you keep your cool.
- Speak Up
A lot of people don’t even talk about mental health unless they are making a joke about it. Which for some, that is their coping mechanism. But employees at work are afraid to disclose information o their employers still today when for thousands of years it has been known that our minds can get sick. Making mental illness a normal part of conversation like diabetes and broken bones is another great way to raise mental health awareness.
By focusing on mental health, you can help solve many of the world's problems. Psychological health links to violence, poverty, lack of education, and it creates cycles of itself. Bringing awareness to mental health can save lives, and make our world a better place.
