#BellLetsTalk: Mental Health Awareness and why it matters

Today is #BellsLetsTalk day. For those who don’t know what it is, #BellLetsTalk is a mental health awareness campaign they run every year, and every tweet with #BellLetsTalk or doing some sort of related activity involving Bell results in Bell donating 5 cents towards mental health initiatives.

Why am I bringing this up? You probably already see tons of tweets or Facebook frames for profile pictures that are clearly for #BellLetsTalk already before you even read this post. Shouldn’t all that awareness be enough?

My reasoning is, though we have days and events of activism for mental health, changes to make mental health less stigmatized and to make it more important can be slow. Incredibly slow. That’s why we have to keep bringing up awareness of how important it is. Without consistently doing so through campaigns such as this, change won’t happen.

I believe that if we continue spreading awareness through campaigns such as these, change can happen. Could it be slow? Yes. But could it come a lot faster than us not doing anything about it? Definitely yes.

So, what can we do about this? Participate in mental health campaigns such as #BellLetsTalk, that’s for sure. I also believe taking the time to educate yourself on these matters is also important, and definitely worth looking into.

For those who struggle with mental health issues, please do not be afraid to speak up about it to someone you trust. I am aware the stigma is present at times to varying degrees, and so it can be hard to speak up, but taking the step to get help is important for your wellbeing.

For those unsure as of how to care for their own mental health, one can take care of their mental health by just taking the time to care for themselves. Play a fun and/or relaxing game like “Mandagon” or check out self care tips through things like #31DaysofSelfCare. Follow positivity blogs. Try guided meditations. Take a few moments to just breathe, or have a glass of water to hydrate yourself!

I do not claim to be an expert on mental health, and these options I present are only a couple out of many things you can do. And if you’re really unsure of what to do—again, just ask someone. Anyone. Search it up on google or consult a friend, or a therapist. It might take some time to figure out what is the right fit for you, but don’t give up.

Also, given how I post book reviews on this blog, if you’re looking for books that have protagonists dealing with mental health in some way, even if mental health is not necessarily the main focus of the book, I can recommend a few:

• “History Is All You Left Me” by Adam Silvera has the main protagonists dealing with the grief and loss of a loved one, and this impacts their mental health a lot.
• “Grounded” by Kate Klise has the main protagonist dealing with the grief and loss of a loved one, though I admit this book doesn’t go as in-depth with it compared to “History Is All You Left Me.”
• “The Rest Of Us Just Live Here” by Patrick Ness has a main protagonist who deals with OCD and anxiety (though the anxiety is more emphasized), while his sister is mentioned to have dealt with an eating disorder, and he and his sister actually do discuss about this in the book.

With all of this in mind, I hope we can all work towards a future where we have the resources to help anyone and everyone with their mental health when they do need the help, and that everyone feels comfortable speaking up about it without the fear of stigma.