Recently, Kid Cudi announced that he was checking himself into rehab for depression and suicidal thoughts. Shortly after this announcement, Twitter quickly took up the supportive and well-intentioned #YouGoodMan. All around the nation, the topic of mental health amongst black men was final being given the light it deserved. Men and women alike spoke out about the support needed for our black brothers and sisters - but was this light enough? Was it broad enough? Was it bright enough?
And the simple answer is no. Not even close.
While this moment has given many people the chance to sound of on the inherent toxic masculinity instilled in our men that encourages them to believe “feelings are weakness” – we are failing to see the bigger picture. We are failing to see that we live in an age that is toxic to mental health – and even more toxic to those with pre-existing mental health conditions. And with that toxicity, comes the very real adversity of inaccessible mental health care.
With the emergence of social media as the appropriate and necessary medium for Millennial activism – we’ve come to the point where watching the murders of our brothers and sisters is as common as syndicated television. We’ve become privy to the slaughter of countless human beings. We no longer live in a time in which the problem of police violence and racial violence existed in spaces that didn’t always infect our own. This is our reality. These are our facts.
It is, then, no surprise that in the midst of what can only be described as utter turmoil and disarray, the time has come where comprehensive discussion and immediate action are required in regards to the mental health – but what does that really mean? For some, it seems like this means regular self-care and unplugging from social media to reconnect or center themselves.
Yet for others, this emotionally arduous time has brought the reality of inaccessible mental health care to the forefront of our daily life. Time and again, I wake up in the morning with videos and images of men being shot, women being body-slammed, and children mourning the loss of the families. Time and again, I leave this stories feeling upset and emotionally distraught – and with each story, I am once again embroiled in the internal fight to not succumb to my own mental illness. But each day is harder than the last, and I’m tired. I’m tired of fighting this invisible demon every day. I’m tired of feeling like I should be ashamed. Yet, more importantly, I’m tired of not being able to talk about it. I’m tired of being silent. I, like many others, am tired of being unable to get the care I need to thrive.
I do not want to just survive. I want to thrive. I deserve to thrive. We deserve to thrive.
And the only way we can begin to thrive, is if we start being honest.
We are drowning in the acidic imagery of racism, hate, and murder. We are flooded with toxic language both on and off social media. Our bodies are battered and bruised with the pain of our slain brothers and sisters. We can no longer say that #BlackLivesMatter if we don’t also say black minds matter. We need to take care ourselves – and for those of us with pre-existing mental health conditions, run of the mill self-care is not enough. We need to admit that we are afraid of what image we’ll portray if we show we are tired. We need to admit that these illnesses are real. We need to admit that these are not “white people problems”. We need to admit that, even know, the stigma surrounding depression, PTSD, bi-polar disorder, and other mental illnesses is alive and well.
We are not thriving. We are surviving. It is time that we say we deserve to thrive.
It is time for us to do far more than merely unplug and re-center. It is time that we dismantle and extinguish the shame surrounding mental health. It is time for us to tell our struggling brothers and sisters that it is okay to be tired, and that we are there for them all the same. It is time that we as a community become champions for a movement that has needed to happen for ages. It is time for us to fight for mental health. It is time for us to fight for the right to thrive, because black lives deserve to thrive.
