W
hen legendary actor and comedian Robin Williams died about a month ago, hearts broke around the world. Social media erupted with grief-stricken statuses and tweets mourning the loss of such a beloved and talented person, someone whom many of us remember from some of our favorite childhood movies like “Hook” and “Aladdin.”
Most of us expressed shock and dismay that someone with so much externally expressed energy and passion was suffering so much on the inside.
While Williams’ death was a tragedy for all who knew and loved him, it also served as an important reminder about the devastating effects of untreated mental illness. Amid the pain and anguish, Robin Williams’ suicide shed light on this issue, which is so important yet often ignored.
The connection between Williams’ death and his battle with severe depression dominated the headlines for weeks. People all across the country felt empowered to share their own experiences with depression, bipolar disorder and other mental health conditions. Suddenly, everyone upset about his death became instant advocates for mental health, criticizing the stigmatization of mental illness and demanding a more comprehensive mental-health care system.
Finally, a national conversation about mental illness began, a conversation that was well overdue.
But when the media frenzy around Robin Williams’ death calmed down, so did the impassioned pleas for mental-health awareness. Once the issue was no longer trending on Facebook or Twitter, no one wanted to discuss it, and the conversation was over nearly as quickly as it had started.
We cannot allow the issue of mental illness to continually be ignored. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, about 13.6 million Americans are living with serious mental illnesses, including depression or bipolar disorder.
Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the U.S., and more than 90 percent of people who die by suicide had one or more mental illnesses. These are frightening statistics.
Mental illness does not discriminate. It can affect anyone at any time, and the results can be shattering.
The alarming facts about mental illness prove that we owe it to ourselves, our friends, our families and our communities to make mental health a priority. Right now, it clearly isn’t.
Access to mental-health care is extremely limited and costly. According to the Washington Post, it’s more difficult to get access to a mental-health professional than any other type of doctor. Even when services are available, many insurance companies do not consider mental illness to be a primary health concern.
Even more troubling is that in times of economic decline, funds for mental-health care are cut significantly. During the recession, states dropped a combined $1.8 billion from their mental-health care budgets. The cuts in Florida have been particularly drastic, now ranking a pathetic 49th in mental-health care funding nationally.
Under these circumstances, it’s hardly surprising that many people with a mental illness decide not to seek treatment. The effort of finding mental-health services combined with the overwhelming cost is enough to discourage most people from pursuing medical care, even if they are experiencing tremendous pain and suffering.
We cannot wait for the death of another beloved public figure to inspire us to take action.
To help combat the sad reality of our country’s inadequate mental-health care system, it’s up to all of us to express our support and offer encouragement to those who are dealing with mental illness. We must not allow anyone to try to face that battle alone and suffer in silence, something that happens all too often in America today.
We must continue to share our personal experiences with mental illness and also offer to listen to the stories of others. If we truly want to make a difference and shape the future for the better, we have to keep talking. The conversation about mental health must continue.
Moriah Camenker is a UF public relations senior. Her columns appear on Tuesdays.
[A version of this story ran on page 6 on 9/16/2014 under the headline "Talking about mental illness is a must"]
