Am I too insensitive?

A POV on mental health exploitaion.

Disclaimer: This in no way is an attempt to demean mental health, just an attempt to call out the misuse.

It’s just that this one’s an extremely controversial topic, and I don’t want to get into any trouble,

But well, I’ll try to tread carefully!

Here it goes!!

Here’s to

Normalization or trivialization - A POV on mental health overuse.

Sabse pehle, lets talk about ‘trivialization’. Its basically a term thats used when something is seemingly made much less or muchh more important than it truly is. You know, jo bhi ‘badha chadhake bolna’ ka opposite ho. Well in this post, both the meanings can be used, seemingly made more prevalent/popular, while undermining the actual gravity.

Mental Health in India has always been something that's kind of tabbooed, and stigmatized. Half the people don’t believe in it, while the other half are TIRED of explaining it to them…!

However… with the coming of GenZ, the long overdue normalization finally began—but didn’t last long. We overdid it, mental health turned into yet another ‘aesthetic’.

Lemme explain,

Taking into account the digital exposure, overload, and its side effects, Gen Z, while being highly prone to anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues, is also extremely well versed when it comes to talking about, and taking care of their own mental health. They’re aware, they’re sensitive,

And maybe even hyperaware,

hypersensitive,

Or more specifically, one could say that they’re actually under-aware, consideringgg that at some point, the term is almost being exploited, being glamorized, turning into yet another ‘us brooo’ moment.

I mean, everything’s a competition nowadays! Aj kal you have to think twice before sharing problems, or even confiding in someone, you never know when they’re going to say ‘mera soch’ and are gonna start ranting about how much harder their own life is. Please, when did ‘kiski zindagi zyada bakwas hai’ (who’s life is worse) turn into a debate topic?

Is it because casually throwing around terms like ‘anxiety,’ ‘depression’, ‘panic attacks’ etc. with reference to your own life, without even properly knowing the gravity of these words,is something that seems cool now?

Can we please understand that these are actual dysfunctional disorders? I mean some might call this blog a mockery, but hey, why can’t we see what’s going on right in front of us? It’s almost as if we’re choosing to exploit the terms.

Pre-exam jitters really aren’t anxiety.

We need to understand that every minor inconvenience isn’t a mental issue; it’s actually disrespectful to those actually going through them. (hence the trivialisation negative)

And it isn’t just about the overuse or exploitation; It’s about terming the ‘I’m sad’s as ‘i’m depressed’ and the ‘Oh god, I’m nervous’s as ‘I have anxiety.’ (andd the trivialization positive)

To what extent are we really processing emotions?

People now seem to think that struggling mentally is deep, and relatable. Ki, by saying ‘mujhe bohott stress ho raha hai yar’ in response to normal school life, is going to gain them sympathy, induce pity, and present them as some sort of an extremely relatable personality! Because apparently extreme psychological distress is something everyone goes through! It’s about glorifying distress as some sort of a Pinterest aesthetic, about romanticizing mental health struggles.

It’s almost as if we’re using them as a universal excuse, or just justification for all kinds of actions. I know this isnt exactly connected, but when did blaming your sun signs become an excuse for random emotional outbursts? Since when did “I’m a Leo, what do you expect?” turn into justofication for an anger outburst? It’s about hiding behind these terms to avoid facing reality, about using them as excuses to avoid accountability.

Minor discomfort isn’t stress. Minor bumps along the way aren’t depression. Butterflies in the stomach aren’t anxiety.

They’ve read a single article, and apparently now they’re healing gurus. You see the point here? Mental health is also, in addition to the other million misuses, being used as a marketing strategy, or a reach increaser because everyone’s afraid of appearing unsympathetic.

Its basically a commercialization strategy. Terms like ‘Introvert’, ‘Anxiety’ etc. are practically being used as instagram boosters now. There are quizzes to tell you whether you’re a trauma survivor or not, there’s content and songs about breakdowns—and they’re considered relatable?!

How are breakdowns relatable?!

And apparently, everyone’s healing nowadays—apparently, they’re all trauma survivors. ‘Healing’s messy’ is literally being used as a hashtag / caption now

There’s an era for everything- and every single action is justified by ‘Sorry, I’m just in my selfish, soft girl, healing era’.

What exactly is the entire world healing from?

Is the world really trying to be sympathetic, or have they just found a new way of hiding from the accountability, a new excuse to justify whatever, a new trend to jump on to?

Is the situation really sooo bad that they need to hide behind actual dysfunctional disorders now? All in an attempt to appear more modern, more understanding, more evolved; whilst

calling out all those who speak against them—who, in their eyes, are the ones making a mockery out of this term.

But I have a question;

Who really is making a mockery of mental health?

Whether intentionally or not,

Is using depression as a hashtag worse,

Or is calling out the misuse something that makes you unethical??

Does that make me unethical? Am I tooo unsympathetic?

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What do you think? Is this normalization or trivialization?

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P.S. You’re welcome to suggest any random topic you might want to hear my POV on!