The Problem With The Slogan, ‘’Its Okay Not To Be Okay…’

With lockdown 2.0 well in swing, the topic of mental health remains prevalent within our society. Many of us, for the second time, are desperate to keep our minds busy and our souls at ease - whether that be through tackling Joe Wicks workouts, or binge watching Benidorm for the 50th time - we are all simply trying to find a way to cope.

Let’s talk about mental health.

**trigger warning **

Emotions are high, and the days are often spent in our own heads, battling with our stresses and anxieties influenced by the pandemic. One minute, were being fed ‘coping tips’ by celebrities and social media influencers. The next, we have experts reporting that the lockdown measures, ‘’have not had as much of an impact on suicides as the public had feared.’’

I retracted this statement from a recent report published by The University of Manchester titled, ‘Suicide in England since the Covid-19 pandemic – early figures from real time.’ In brief, the report compares statistical research figures from pre-lockdown (dating from August 2019) to post lockdown (August 2020). The report concludes that, ‘’there is no evidence of a large national rise in suicide post lockdown that many feared.’’ The report does note that it is too soon to examine the long term impact of economic adversity on mental health and suicide. However, I feel that measuring the impact of lockdown based on suicide statistics is troubling, and reflects a counterproductive perception which is currently held by society. Allow me to elaborate…

The stats:

Earlier this year, a survey undertook by the charity ‘Mind’ revealed that of its 16,000 participants, 65% of adults with a pre-existing mental health problem stated it had become worse during lockdown, with a higher figure being recorded (75%) among young people aged 13-24 in the same category. What’s more, 22% of participants above the age of 13 whom had not previously suffered with poor mental health, stated that their mental health during lockdown was either poor or very poor.

Additional research conducted by ‘Rethink Mental Illness’ has further revealed that 79% of participants (who had pre-existing mental health conditions) reported that their mental health had got worse or much worse as a result of the pandemic and the measures used to contain it. Furthermore, the same survey revealed that:

• 42% of those surveyed said their mental health was worse because they were getting less support from mental health services.

• When asked to consider how support from mental health services had changed overall during the pandemic, 58% said that support had worsened overall.

These are just two of MANY independent research reports I have read regarding the impact of people’s mental health during lockdown – I didn’t want to spend the next 20 minutes reeling off the same facts to you guys, to make the same points (I’m not writing my dissertation anymore) so I’ve tried to summarise the main recurring figures.

My two cents on the issue -

The results presented by the charities give us a more clear image of people’s mental well-being during the pandemic, whilst the results produced by The University of Manchester simply tell us that ‘not as many people have committed suicide as we had expected as a result of the pandemic.’ The wording of this statement implicitly translates to me, that the issue of mental health is not as serious as one may have previously thought, because there isn’t an increase in suicide.

The fact that suicide figures are ‘indifferent’ post lockdown, does not invalidate the fact that the lockdown has impacted people’s mental health, and the lack of support being issued in response to this. I understand that the report is not intended to deflect away from the severity of the mental health crisis we are currently facing. However, I do believe the wording of the concluding statement almost dilutes the severity of the issue.

It is reflective of the societal problem that mental health is seemingly only taken ‘seriously’ when somebody has committed suicide. I understand this comes across as quite a bold statement, however in my personal experience, I have found this to be true. I have had friends at university, (pre and post lockdown) who have tried to get counselling, who in turn have been told they are not a priority because they do not want to kill themselves.’ I have had the same friends report that they want to harm themselves to try and get an appointment, to be told they must wait 12-16 weeks for the next available one. In 12 weeks, this could have been too late. Heartbreakingly, for a lot, it has been too late.

Why is it that it has to come to suicide, or an attempt on your life, to be taken seriously? FYI, this is not an article bashing the national lockdown nor our medical professionals, but one bashing our government’s agenda (or should I say lack of) regarding mental health. This remains as an issue, both presently and prior to COVID-19, and yet we are still waiting for change.

Both the statistics previously stated, compounded with personal conversations I’ve had with friends and other young people as part of a charity I work with, indicate that I am not alone in this thinking, and it’s about time our government took preventative action, instead of brainwashing us with the slogan, ‘’it is okay not to be okay.’’

The problem with the slogan, ‘’it is okay not to be okay’’ -

You’ve all heard it – the slogan ‘‘it’s okay not to be okay’’ is used all over the internet by celebrities and political campaigns alike, and whilst the internal message of this slogan is perfectly valid, it removes the responsibility from the government to actually take action.

Yes, it is okay not to be okay. Yes, absolutely you should talk to your friends and any support you have around you. However, you should have easy access to adequate, professional interventions and facilities around you to support you - so that you do not have to rely solely on a friend. There should be some form of preventative measures in place. This slogan essentially takes away the government’s responsibility to amend the environmental issues which are factually proven to be impacting the public’s deteriorating mental health, (such as austerity), and distracts from their lack of funding for mental health services, by normalising that it is okay for you not to be okay – ‘its normal’, ‘that’s life’, ‘it’s a sign of the times we live in.’ The generation before us never lived through austerity. In my 22 years on this earth, I am living through a second recession – just one of many examples - yet, people wonder why our generation’s mental health is worsening.

We are in the grip of a mental health crisis in this country. Prevention strategies are non-existent and crisis intervention strategies have no resources behind them. So what is the national response to this? The celebrity ‘Be Kind’ campaign(ers) - Gordon Ramsey, a bloke who became famous by berating, bullying and belittling others on TV, telling us that 48% of young people are struggling and that we ‘must be kind’, (no shade Gordon, I still love you). Whilst I can appreciate the message of the campaign, it is simply not enough to overcome this social issue. The crisis we are facing needs a government led prevention strategy. Not celebrities campaigning for us to simply ‘be kind.’

Political views aside, I believe that any responsible government should make the mental well-being of the very people who put them in power, a priority. I am angry because all of us as a society, old and young, deserve better. The mental health crisis has been present long before covid-19, and is being exacerbated further by the pandemic. Yet, we are still waiting for adequate mental health support. I do not think it is unreasonable to demand better services for our mental well-being. I am a big believer of being a part of the change you want to see, and our generation is making such huge changes that have never been acted upon before – Extinction Rebellion, BLM, etc – let’s make this another one.

In my next blog article I am writing about the charity I work with, Its Our Day (IOD). IOD understands that young people are facing pressures that no generation has had to face before, and how life (especially in these uncertain times) can be difficult, which is why we want to develop and promote initiatives aimed at reducing the number of young people experiencing stress, anxiety (and poor mental well-being in general). Our vision is to work in collaboration with young people, schools, universities and other charities, to create a safe and supportive environment in which young people can thrive. This is a whole of society problem, which requires a while of society response.

*****The article I have written is completely independent from IOD and the content is wholly my own opinions/beliefs/perceptions.*****

In the mean-time, if you would like to show support for IOD, please give them a follow on:

Instagram: @itsourdayofficial

Twitter: @itsourdayuk

Website: www.itsourday.org.uk/