As for this week? I have decided that I’m going to focus my attention on women’s mental health. I won’t compare men and women’s mental health, mainly because there’s no reason to compare. We all deal with different problems and health issues, we can’t help it. Just like how women deal with being shamed, fat shamed, degraded for the person they are, shunned, harassed… men also deal with that too. But for the sake of this regarding women’s health, I have the power to speak about what I and many other females struggle with on a day-to-day basis.
To just put it out there on the table, I’m not perfect. Everyday I struggle with both anxiety and depression, both clinically diagnosed by my primary physician. I have been put on some medication to help alleviate the both of them, to which I’ve been taking them since the beginning of this year. I’ve had a lot of things happen in my life that have made me this way, some I’d rather not share. I understand the struggle of NOT being okay, I think it’s one of the hardest things that us as humans go through. We can’t help it either, it’s not our fault. It’s apart of life’s challenges, these are meant to be taken head on and overcome.
Just like how I did a poll for men’s mental health, I did one for women’s mental health. About 90% of my female friends said that they feel comfortable enough to talk about their mental health while the other 10% said that they don’t feel comfortable. When you compare the percentage ranges between both men and women, there’s a drastic difference. It’s great that women feel comfortable talking about how they feel, but not so great when men aren’t able to feel the same way. There should be a balance, where everyone feels safe to talk about how they feel. I know that we all deal with personal situations that affect how we think and feel on a day-to-day basis.
With this being said, women? You are beautiful, you are strong, you are amazing. NEVER forget that about yourself. You can reach out, you can speak on how you feel to either a therapist or trusted friend. And if you feel comfortable enough, reach out to me, I will listen and be there for you. There’s people out there who love and care about you, and even they would probably be willing to listen and be there for you if you need them. YOUR feelings are validated. YOUR feelings are important; treat them that way.
