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PSYCHODELIC STALL RUNSFORD LARYEA

with this consideration and are attending therapy sessions and getting help. On a personal level and on my capacity as a mental health enthusiast, this is not only encouraging to see, but it also bodes fairly well for the future psychological prognosis for our country as a whole.

Unfortunately, while we rave about the positives, it is equally relevant to consider the socalled drawbacks in spreading the ‘mental health word’. In the main, there are still sections of our population that hold the belief that something like therapy ‘is not for them’ and would basically never agree to ‘speaking to a stranger’ about their personal issues. It turns out that this is quite a popular opinion because some people feel the whole nature of going for counselling or seeking therapy may be a little too invasive.

Therapy

Of course, everyone holds entitlement to whom they choose to share their personal stories with, however, this speaks to the broader perception of what therapy looks like and the work that still needs to be done to deconstruct the false image of what seeking help means and looks like. The appeal in seeking assistance for mental health issues often gets lost in half-cooked opinions that other people may have of it and as is often the case, these spread quicker than the actual facts themselves. Overtime, this has proven to be a

hindrance as many people have opted to make dramatic life decisions in place of seeing a psychologist, while others choose to hide their needs for professional mental health attention in fear of being marginalised by their families, for instance.

Therefore, as already alluded to, there is still a need for a total deconstruction of what exists as mental health and seeking professional psychological help in the minds of people in our society. It is from a change in that so that more and more people can begin to alter their thoughts of what mental health itself constitutes, how it relates to them on a day to day basis, as well as how they can be actively involved in monitoring and nurturing their own psychological well-being.

Suicide

The rise to prominence of mental health disorders resulting in suicide over the years is not the only cause for concern from a psychosocial perspective; issues like gender-based violence, violence and some of the inexplicable murders we read about are all tied to the human being’s psychology, whether as an individual or in groups. This seems reason enough to battle hard to ensure that our people are well equipped with knowledge about the behaviours and ways of thinking of others as well as of their own. Holistically, this would contribute greatly to the overall wellness of the people in our families and around our communities, thus breeding more pleasant living environments.

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