My Anxiety Is Not Your Damsel In Distress

Among the media’s attempts to open the discussion of mental health, there’s another, arguably more dangerous, movement growing in tandem. Love as a treatment for mental health goes way, way back, to Oscar winners like “Silence of the Lambs” and cult classics like “Wristcutters: A Love Story.” Diseases have been Hollywood’s “IT” girl of themes for a while now, but as someone with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), my mental health — and that of others — isn’t a plot line or object of interest. It can be an emotional experience, yes, but it’s also an incredibly personal journey that doesn’t need a savior. In the controversial show “13 Reasons Why,” Clay Jensen is the ninth recipient of some tell-all tapes recorded by his classmate Hannah, who committed suicide. After he listens to them, he says, “I cost a girl her life because I was afraid to love her.” The same idea, that love is a treatment, is also seen in “Wristcutters, A Love Story.” It’s a cult classic that uses suicide as a trope, ignores the larger context of mental health, and entertains the idea that someone can come back from the dead to fix their mistakes. An inaccurate portrayal for everyone “These types of media often show a very narrow view of what living with mental illness is really like,” explains Robert Duff, PhD, psychologist, and author of “F**k Anxiety.” This points to another potentially damaging scene from “13 Reasons Why,” ...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news