Stigma Surrounding Stars

Marylin Monroe, Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, Kurt Cobain. All of them were famous historical figures who had a large impact on the world, whether it was through music, writing or expression. However, one thing they all had in common was the struggle with mental health in a world where it was very stigmatized.

Decades back, mental health was not as normalized as it is now, so it was harder for people to get proper treatment for their mental illnesses. "Mental health was used as a means of suppressing people," said sophomore Amelia Eakright. "The whole reason that mental health was made so taboo was because the people running society wanted to make sure they were the only ones heard – they wanted to silence any voices that didn't agree with theirs completely."

Senior Kaiden Nutty agreed with Eakright, stating that individuals were often diagnosed with more physical illnesses, rather than treated for mental disorders they struggled with. "They were thought to be the devil or something because they wouldn't stop spouting nonsense," said Nutty. "Depression wasn't really that recognized. [Society] just said 'suck it up.'"

Though the stigma that surrounded mental health affected all members of society, Eakright puts emphasis on the way men used to associate with mental illness. "They weren't allowed to show emotion or cry because it was deemed as weakness and they couldn't imagine presenting themselves that way," said Eakright. "Men avoided mental health like the plague because they deemed it as bad, and they associated anyone they disliked with mental illnesses."

For the most part, the struggle with mental illness has been destigmatized. However, a group of individuals that have been and still are heavily criticized for their mental disorders is celebrities. "With modern celebrities, most typically get judged harshly for seeking any type of help," said Eakright. "Alcoholism and addiction are seen as trashy, depression is seen as being dramatic or mopey, anxiety is equated to being annoying and neurotic and celebrities are people who are under the most pressure from these views."

Something that greatly affects the intense criticism celebrities receive is the constant surveillance they receive from society. "With celebrities, there's more to it – photographs and being talked about," said junior Estelle Mitford. "It can change them mentally because they're always being judged positively or negatively."

Besides celebrities, other members of society also struggle with mental health-related conditions. In fact, Nutty described his own problems with his, such as social anxiety and anger issues. He believed his mental health got better through social media and going back into in-person school. "I have major, major social anxiety because I was in e-learning for four years," said Nutty. "Because of social media, I was able to open up and now that I'm back in school, I'm doing more social things."

Though his mental health improved, Nutty recognized through his personal life that doctors can give horrible and detrimental treatments, specifically the treatment his mother received that negatively affected her life and the life of those around her. "Because of a certain doctor, she went through electroshock therapy, and her brain is completely messed up," said Nutty. "She now has issues where she'll forget who we are sometimes."

Because of this, Nutty explained that though society has come very far with the way they treat the topic of mental health, there is still a long way to go. "If we're going to advocate for mental health, we have to advocate for all of it," said Eakright. "Not just the aesthetic OCD where everything is clean, not just the girls who look pretty when they cry, not just the guy who's impulsivity you find attractive. Those are issues, along with the hidden baggage that comes along with that. We simply have to be honest with ourselves about it and admit our part in our own issues."

Story by Lillian Coffin