MENTAL HEALTH

With the dawn of the Machine Age (roughly 1880-1945), the need for many hands was significantly reduced. This, coupled with the introduction of formal medicinal birth control in the 1950’s, caused the size of an average family unit in Canada to decrease steadily – dropping from over 12 children in the 1850’s to only 2.5 children in 20201 .

With this change, the sense of ‘community’ has altered drastically – encouraging increased independence and decreased reliance on others. A community, once considered to be primarily the family unit, or the members of the immediate area outside of the family unit, is now more flexible. It may be a group of people who have similar political, religious, or cultural beliefs. In essence, a community is simply a group of people who feel a connection.

What a community no longer requires is proximity. COVID-19 has shown us that the people who are closest in a geographical sense, do not necessarily come in contact often – if at all. However, the virtual community has boomed, allowing people to reach out to networks in a way that would have been impossible even twenty years ago.

With this decrease in family size, increase in independence, and virtual reality at the tips of our fingers, there is an added expectation that individuals are self-sufficient. In a world where you can ‘Google’ any question, why would anyone struggle with anything in life?

But the struggle is real. Mental illness is on the rise as our sense of real, connected, geographic community has been reduced to mere moments when we leave the safety of our houses to venture out for the basic necessities of life. Mental Health Research Canada states that “One-third of Canadians report their mental health is affecting their ability to function, with social and family life being the hardest hit” since the onset of the pandemic.

So, how do we help those that are struggling with their own mental health?

As a geographic community, we need to step up and support each other – creating a world where our differences are embraced, we are respected, and we feel safe asking for help.

One of the greatest advantages of living in the year 2021 is that the mental health movement of the past decade has significantly increased the support available to those that need it. For those who have never struggled with mental illness, the first step to being able to help a loved one is through education.

New parents often hear the phrase “Don’t worry, you’ll figure it out”, or “Don’t worry, it’s just a phase”. Historically, these are phrases that were often used for other situations as well – responses to the child who is dealing with the schoolyard bully, or the teenager struggling with their sexual identity, or the woman dealing with an abusive husband. In essence, they are being told that they can figure it out themselves, that there is nothing anyone can do, and that they must deal with their situation alone.

My personal goal in life is to leave the world a better place than it was when I entered it. With that in mind, I have written my memoir entitled “This Will Not Break Me”, detailing my personal journey with postpartum depression. My story is simply one example of the inner thoughts and feelings of a young woman, and new mom, struggling with her mental health for the first time. It is one example of the lengths that can be taken to hide that struggle from everyone. It is the most intimate, personal, private period of my life and I have opened my world, so that I may help the world to be a better place.

The greater narrative of my story is one person’s struggle with mental illness. No one deserves to suffer. As a community, any community, we need to continue to break the stigma around mental illness. We must work to achieve a society where speaking of mental illness is done with the same confidence as speaking of a broken bone or the common cold. With the same acceptance. With the same support and love.

We have come a long way, but we have much further to go. Through education, and conversation, we will one day live in a world of acceptance.