Mental health in the media needs a reboot - here’s where young people say we should start
If you’ve been feeling increasingly depleted or overwhelmed in the past six months, you’re not alone. COVID-19 has been terrible for our mental health. One recent study found that one in four American adults is now likely to be experiencing symptoms of depression, which is a threefold increase from last year, and a CDC survey found that nearly 31% of respondents 18-24 have experienced symptoms of anxiety or depression. For systematically marginalized communities including Black and Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC), LGBTQ+ identifying people, and unhoused youth, the implications of COVID-19 on their mental health is a compounding crisis.
We have been working with young people in the US to more deeply understand how they process, prioritize, and seek care for their own mental health. In 2020, we spoke with young people in the San Francisco Bay Area and Atlanta to explore new strategies for delivering messages about mental healthcare to youth, and one idea kept coming up - why not use existing popular TV shows and movies? After all, if we’re trying to reach youth people where they’re at, why not reach them with the smartphones in the palms of their own hands?
We asked young people how we might normalize conversations about mental health by weaving stories about resilience and care-seeking behavior into the plot lines of popular films and tv shows.
So listen up, entertainment industry! Here are three themes that young people said must be addressed.
Make stories about mental health more mainstream - and realistic
Young people told us that they want to see more successful and powerful characters who face ongoing mental health struggles but who actively seek care. “Currently, [the] media makes it seem like mental health issues are quickly fixable through therapy or medication whereas, in reality, the timeline for recovery is long-drawn,” said a 19-year old in the San Francisco Bay Area.
It’s also important to see characters who are impacted by their own mental health but not defined by it. “We need to see people who have difficulty getting out of bed, socializing with big groups, or going to the mall. Ordinary things that are hard about life [for people who struggle with mental health], said an 18-year-old in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Address toxic masculinity by normalizing vulnerability
“Growing up I always heard that only girls cry,” said a 23-year old man in Atlanta. “We are trained to bottle up emotions so when something traumatic happens, we don't have the tools to deal with it.” Toxic masculinity is hurting young people, especially Black men, who shared during interviews that they were raised to believe that masculinity is aligned with stoicism and strength and that vulnerability is a sign of weakness.
Young people said that they want to see Black male characters being vulnerable, opening up with their romantic partner to build emotional intimacy, actively seeking professional help, or using successful coping strategies.
Make the connection between physical health and mental health for nonbinary and trans young people
Distrust of the healthcare system can sometimes prevent young nonbinary and trans young people from accessing mental health care. When they go to the doctor, trans youth shared that they are routinely asked to explain their gender identity, which can be traumatizing for those seeking to shed their birth identity or "dead name" “It's discouraging to seek physical healthcare that poses a risk to my mental health,” said a non-binary 18-year-old in the San Francisco Bay Area. “Hearing my dead name or being misgendered, or being asked irrelevant questions about my sexual history are routine but difficult experiences I have with the healthcare system.”
Young people want to see nonbinary and trans characters in the media, challenges they face when trying to access basic health care, and depictions of their struggle with gender dysphoria that goes beyond their genitals. This could be easily and meaningfully shown by a trans male’s reluctance to go outside in warm climates for fear of wearing a shirt that might reveal their chest, mentally preparing to go clothes shopping, or learning where to access medical information and products that they need.
An opportunity to blend expertise
Young people in the US are increasingly intersectional. They are constantly exploring and balancing multiple identities that may include their sexual orientation, race, gender identity, housing status, and citizenship. Storylines and characters that they see in movies and on TV must be as intersectional and dynamic as they are.
We believe that there is a huge opportunity for the entertainment industry, public health practitioners, and young people to join forces to create content that is as engaging as it is informative and actionable. By working together to create truly relatable storylines that are supported by behavioral science to encourage health seeking behavior, we can begin to model a world in which accessing mental health care for marginalized communities is normalized, supported, and as seamless as ordering a product you just saw on TV.
Special thanks to the young people in San Francisco, Oakland, and Atlanta who contributed to this research. If you are 13-24 years old and would like to find out more about getting involved in YLabs, you can reach out here.
