It is not often that I find myself outraged to the point of anger but Janet Street Porter’s article on depression in the Daily Mail has me incensed. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-1278510/Depression-Its-just-new-trendy-illness.html. In a few hundred words she has attempted to undo many years of tireless campaigning to reduce the stigma and raise awareness of mental ill health. She likens depression to being the ‘latest accessory’, saying that it is ‘just the new trendy illness’. What? Having worked with many people with depression it has never seemed to me to be something people make a conscious choice to get.
Just as people are becoming confident to share with others their experience of depression, Porter ridicules their accounts of attempting suicide and the daily battle they face to get well by saying, ‘get a grip’. And it is exactly that lack of empathy and understanding that my clients have to deal with. Often, during our mental health awareness sessions, attendees – for the first time - feel safe and liberated enough to share their story and seek help. They often cite the media’s lack of understanding as perpetuating the stigma they face from family, friends and work colleagues.
Evidently, she is just a ‘tension seeker’ and has not really researched her subject before commenting. The stigma around mental ill health has not gone away- indeed it is one of the biggest challenges facing my clients in the workplace and we work together to tackle it. Depression doesn’t just affect the ‘middle classes’ as Porter claims. Mental illness, unlike Porter, does not discriminate, anyone – irrespective of background, wealth or status can be affected.
What’s your view?
