For example, in Kenya many people claim the next challenge after Covid-19 will be a national mental emergency because of how the pandemic has negatively impacted the country’s mental health. In ordinary times, there are those who struggle with anxiety and depression and because of the mainstream views of mental illness as an intrinsic, biological defect of individuals. Drugs will not solve our mental health issues. In the last decade as mental health awareness has increased, so has prescription drugs as a solution. Critiquing the medical model of mental illness means rejecting the limited way we are taught to view “mental illness.” But it does not mean someone’s experience is not real and not deeply distressing to her and the people around her.

Source: Standard Digital February 19, 2021 19:06 UTC