We Must Stop the Stigmas

I want to talk about something here, and that is mental health. Now, I want to state up front that I am not an expert on mental health. The extent of my knowledge on the subject is pretty small. I suffer with some anxiety and depression, as I know a lot of chronic pain sufferers do, but other than that, I don’t really have much experience with it.

So, despite not being an expert, I want to breech the subject now in light of what happened this week in Las Vegas. For those of you who don’t know, there was a mass casualty shooting in Las Vegas at a concert this week that killed 58 innocent, precious lives and injured 489 other innocent victims. It was the most deadly shooting event in United States history. One crazed shooter rented a hotel room at a high-rise hotel above a venue that was hosting a country music festival with over 22,000 attendees. For 10 straight minutes he shot several guns out 2 different windows down onto the concert goers killing and injuring over 500 victims. It’s incomprehensible. It’s heartbreaking. It’s soul crushing. There are no adequate words to explain how I feel. I’ve cried several times this week thinking about the victims and seeing stories of heroism, survival, and amazing lives that were lived and cut short. I’ve also been so proud to be an American hearing stories of ordinary people doing extraordinary things to help fellow Americans. I watched Monday night football and they did a moment of silence for the Vegas victims and then the National Anthem, and there were no protests by players or other things going on (football and politics have been in an uproar lately). It was simply about Americans standing together to support each other and this country. I just cried because as I listened to the anthem I kept thinking about being an American and what that means to me. I’m just sick to think of those that lost their lives.

What does this have to do with mental health? That’s what they say is the cause of this. They say one man “went crazy” and decided to massacre innocent people. I’ve heard so many stories about how he should have been treated for mental health problems before now and this could have been prevented. I’ve heard people saying there is no way he could have hid his mental health problems from those close to him, like his girlfriend and his brother. I’ve heard people say he must have been suffering with everything from depression to bi-polar to schizophrenia. And what’s the truth? Unfortunately, we will probably never know unless he actually saw a physician and was being treated, which doesn’t seem like the situation.

My first thought is this. Can you hide mental health issues from those closest to you? The simple answer is, yes. But that’s the simple answer. I have suffered with mild depression for about 13 years now, and most people close to me don’t know. It’s well taken care of by medication and unless I told a person, they probably would have no idea. I have recently started suffering with anxiety, and that’s a little harder to “hide”. First of all, I want to say that I’m not trying to hide it, but it is something that can be hidden and I know a lot of people feel more comfortable keeping it hidden due to personal reasons and\or stigmas. So, when I’m suffering an anxiety “attack” it’s hard to keep that hidden from those who are with me. Some people have had other mental health problems (bi-polar, etc) for years without others knowing. I think of celebrities who have had mental health problems for years and have lived their lives in the spotlight without anyone ever knowing. But then I know people who have family members who have started acting differently and there have been some red flags going up that make them question. So what’s the case with the Vegas gunman? I don’t know. His brother and girlfriend have both stated that they didn’t see anything in him that would make them think he had a mental health issue. They had been with him and didn’t know. Is that possible? A lot of people are saying no, but I think the answer is yes, definitely.

My second thought is this. Is there such a thing as just “snapping”? Just having an unexpected mental health break down? Yes. I know this is true. It can happen for no reason, it can happen because people have stopped taking their medications, it can happen because of someones surroundings. I don’t think that’s the case in the Vegas shooting though. He had been collecting an unprecedented amount of guns and ammunition. He had rented the hotel room for several days before the shooting and slowly brought the guns in. He had guns on tripods so he could shoot faster. This wasn’t him just sitting in a hotel room with a gun and “going crazy” and deciding to shoot. He had thought this out. This was premeditated. So, while there is a thing such as snapping, this person didn’t do that.

My last thought is this. We need to talk about mental health more. We need to get rid of the stigmas. We need insurance companies to cover mental health issues the same way they cover physical health issues. We get a physical once a year to make sure our body is healthy, so why don’t we get a mental health exam regularly too? Why don’t we treat our mental health the same way we treat our physical health? I don’t have an answer for that, but I think it’s a question we need to ask LOUD and ask a LOT! We can’t be silent. Could discussing mental health prevent tragedies? My personal opinion is yes. I think we can’t stop getting the word out about mental health and we must stop the stigmas!

I’m sorry if this seems like a rant. I have just had so many thoughts going through my head lately and I don’t know how to best express my thoughts and feelings. But I do honestly believe that we need to discuss mental health more often with more people and get rid of the stigmas that follow it. How do we do that? I don’t know. But I feel like it’s necessary. We must stop the stigmas and get the word out that it’s something to talk about and recognize. 

Kayla