Mental health is currently a big issue in our society. But is that even healthy? Or could it be that we are talking about problems in the first place that shouldn’t actually exist? Our author doesn’t know – but has an opinion.
Celebrities speak out about their depression, eating disorders, and addictions. A wide variety of media explain what gaslighting is, which thoughtlessly said sentences hurt, unsettle, suppress or throw other people off course and which seemingly harmless behaviors may be signs of trauma. We can choose between podcasts that educate us about tangible mental disorders and those in which we learn to live mindfully and consciously with our feelings. There are also various offers, from mental health apps to bound journals and video coaching, that support us in actively working on our mental health, and discussions about whether everyone should go to a psychotherapeutic consultation at least once .
For some time now, the topic of mental health has also been gaining prominence in German GP practices. In any case, the statistics of the health insurance companies show that absenteeism from work due to mental illnesses is much more common today than it was a few years ago. In 2010, the DAK recorded just under 170 lost days for psychological reasons per 100 insured persons, in 2020 it was a proud 265 (and that was no exception because it was the first Corona year, in 2019 there were already 260). With regard to other health-related reasons for absence or sick leave overall, we do not see any comparable development. The proportion of mental illnesses as a reason for absenteeism has clearly increased.
The statistics don’t tell us why. We can guess: Perhaps doctors use the diagnosis “mental health” more often today because they are terribly stressed and this variant is the easiest way for them to identify someone as unable to work. Perhaps they have fewer inhibitions about asking them than they used to. Perhaps patients have fewer inhibitions about honestly naming their complaints. Perhaps both doctors and patients are more aware of the psyche today and consider it as part of our health. Perhaps mental illness has actually increased. We do not know it. All we know is that mental health problems are apparently more widespread and/or present in our society than in the past. So it’s good that we’re talking about it publicly. Or?
Picking everything apart is sometimes counterproductive
Based on my personal experience, I would like to point out that talking about something or dealing with it intensively does not always help. Sometimes it can be downright destructive, turning a small pothole into a huge chasm. How many times in my life have I had weird days where I was in a bad mood but then just had to sleep on it to wake up relaxed and happy. And how often could I have had exactly such days if I hadn’t picked up on this mood, thought it through and turned it into a problem that accompanied me for weeks?
Many people are also familiar with this phenomenon: if they google any physical symptoms that they think they are observing, they can very quickly imagine that they have three incurable diseases at the same time. In most cases they don’t, according to health insurance statistics, but for a time this horrific vision exists in their minds. We may be dealing with a similar phenomenon in the area of mental health problems: the more we know and think about them, the more attention we pay to them, the bigger and more present they become. And all the more absences are on their cap.
After all, as human beings, we naturally have certain psychological coping abilities that we don’t have to do anything for. In the course of evolution, our brain has developed amazing systems that can enable us to deal with difficult circumstances such as loss, failure, hunger, overwhelm, powerlessness and the like and to continue living our lives in a healthy way. The psychologist Doctor Leon Windscheid, who on the one hand explains in podcasts and books about the psyche, feelings and Co., but on the other hand would not generally recommend everyone to go to therapy, occasionally says in interviews or podcasts: “People are a tough animal.” There’s definitely something to it. In this respect, there is no need to worry: Even if we sometimes overdo it a little with our talk and focus on mental health and psyche at the moment – half as wild as tough animals we can take it.
Are we exaggerating at all?
Strictly speaking, it is not at all new or modern that people think about feelings and other phenomena of the human psyche and reveal these thoughts to the public. Ancient philosophers, minnesingers and romantic poets did this too, sometimes to a great extent. At some point in the past, perhaps under the influence of certain critical writings on reason or sentences like “I think, therefore I am”, fear of contact and shame towards emotional and psychological states seem to have arisen, at least in German culture and society . In the generation of our parents and grandparents, it was rather unusual to talk about such sensitivities. Having problems, getting along, or even needing help when you were physically healthy was considered weak. Strange. Awkward. Crazy. Taboo. That’s why they kept quiet. And so, similar to sexuality or racism, we probably have a particularly great need to talk. In any case, that would be understandable.
Silence and taboos often stand in the way of social (further) education and enlightenment. After all, they block an exchange and flow of information. A lot has happened in the field of psychology in the last few years. Not that that would be the big news flash now, but: ailments that were treated with electric shocks in the last century are now treated by experts with discussions and, if necessary, pressed in pills, specifically manufactured and tested active ingredients. That’s remarkable. Emotions, which have long been considered annoying, irrational disruptive factors, are now understood by scientists as useful. They can explain how they are formed, what they do and what role they play in our life and survival. A great deal is now known about which systems in the brain can repeatedly come into conflict and why this is unpleasant but still beneficial. And today there is no longer any doubt that a person’s psychological well-being is no less relevant to their health and quality of life than their physical well-being. Strictly speaking, the two can hardly be separated from one another. However, word hasn’t gotten around enough yet.
Mental health is taken less seriously than physical health
During the corona pandemic, it took months before the media and politicians even considered the psychological consequences of isolation and lockdown. If I have eyelid twitching for days, according to augenaerzte-bern.ch, the top-ranked source for “eyelid twitching” by Google, I should rather go to a doctor to rule out “serious” causes – that’s what I mean organic diseases in contrast to overwork, lack of sleep, stress and an unhealthy lifestyle. Because the latter is oh so harmless. These are just two of countless examples that show that mental health still has a different, lower value than physical health in our society. So there is obviously still a need for speech and clarification – because this assessment is at least questionable.
Conclusion
In my opinion, nobody has to deal with feelings or mental health if they don’t want to and are not interested in these topics. However, I could imagine that many people can learn something valuable about themselves and others if they are interested and engage in it. In any case, I would like to live in a society in which the fact that I eat enough fruit and vegetables or do back exercises is seen and classified in the same way as the fact that I consciously say no, value my breaks or one Use mental health app. In which I like to report sick just as naturally when I can’t make any decisions or lie in bed brooding every evening as when I have a cold or fever. Where I get just as good, respectful, and professional care when I’m constantly sad or resolve any conflict with binge eating as I do when I have gallstones or a prominent mole.
In my opinion, that would be a modern, enlightened, philanthropic and appreciative society in which I could certainly feel very comfortable and relaxed. Maybe I’m wrong, I don’t know – because at the moment, it’s my impression that our society isn’t at this level. I would think it would be nice if we could strive for it together, at least to try out what it’s like. So I don’t see the fact that the topic of mental health is currently experiencing a certain amount of hype as a problem or threat, but rather as a natural, plausible step in a desirable development. In the worst case, we just overdo it for my sake – still more interesting than staying silent. Because: Perhaps the long silence was also a reason for the said trend in the statistics of the health insurance companies.
Sources used: dak.de, augenaerzte-bern.ch