[Applause]
um thank you all for coming here today
to listen to me talk all right so my
topic today is changing the stigma
attached to people with mental health
conditions now I really thank you for
coming here I know it wasn't just for me
but most people would avoid this topic
because it's not easy to listen to
problems about mental health or how
these problems might affect you so in
fact I was thinking maybe I should
change my topic like you know have like
more popular words like how to live your
best life now or because it's a
university how to have good grades but a
great love life another one I was
thinking maybe how to have meaning and
joy in your life because who doesn't
want that right the thing is all these
things are actually relevant to this
topic because all these things are
possible for all of us every one of us
here even when we are struggling if we
change the stigma attached to people
with mental health conditions so let me
tell you why this is true and in how we
can do it so mental health conditions
you might have heard referred to as
mental disorders mental illnesses are
serious health conditions take for
instance depression one of the most
common mental health condition more than
just feeling sad sometimes it makes it
so difficult for you to work play and do
anything else
why because nothing else seems to matter
how about anxiety disorders someone with
anxiety and anxiety Zora finds it so
hard to have that peace of mind your
mind is constantly worrying about the
next thing anticipating in the what-if
always feeling on edge and these health
conditions have ripple effects they
don't just affect the individual
families friendships are disrupted
mental health places are impacted by the
loss of productivity ultimately the
whole nation is affected because mental
health conditions are far more common
far more serious the
most people realized in Malaysia one in
three people there's 30% of Malaysian
adults have poor mental health at any
one point in time but over the course of
life 80% of the population will develop
a mental health condition that's four in
every five will have a mental health
condition some point in that life so the
question here is not whether you'll be
affected whether you should care it's
when and how you'll be affected so that
chances are quite high that you yourself
will have poor mental health some point
in your life and it's practically a
guarantee that you or the people you
love who experience the consequences
because of the ripple effect this adds
up to a huge economic social health
burden on society but is it also an
opportunity for us to make a difference
and improve lives of people everywhere
if we can change the status quo and we
have actually done something you know
our treatments are better than they have
ever been new help is being developed so
we have hope for the future the right
will make good progress but one thing
remarkably has not changed over the
years it's the stigma of mental health
so stigma means a mark of disgrace or a
tox screen is really far I've got
glasses the set I can't see anything
it's a mark of disgrace a sign of shame
right so for ages now having a mental
health condition is associated with just
that as this somehow inherent in you if
you have a mental health condition you
are a weak crazy bad or just unfit for
society and the thing is our negative
stereotypes it goes beyond just
perception right it causes real harm
because people with mental health
conditions are discriminated against
they're more likely to be fired less
likely to be hired and every day
that by people because who wants to be
friends with someone who's crazy now our
negative treatment and I'm negative
stereotypes of people impacts them
it actually makes them worse they begin
to see themselves more negatively they
feel more hopeless and they take a much
longer time to recover the chances are
if you're aware of these stereotypes
research says that you probably endorsed
them too I didn't realize how true it
was until I became depressed now when I
was depressed it's like like I mean I'm
a clinical psychologist so I would never
say someone was weak for feeling bad but
when I was the first like every negative
stereotype hit me like a ton of bricks
like suddenly I was like surely I had to
be strong enough to handle the stress
and surely I had to overcome this and
then surely I was weak for not being
able to push through surely I was a
burden to others and then surely my life
was not worth living and really took
others believing that I was not defined
by my depression but it was not what
society might have seen me as because of
the depression that the depression
wasn't just a problem I had to hide in a
corner and figure out by myself but the
depression was something that I needed
to reach out and get help from friends
family from professionals I owed it to
myself and I hold it to others who cared
about me
so was then four years ago that I
started relate Malaysia now relate has
three purposes so first is to educate so
that people will understand what mental
health is about to destigmatize so
people won't feel ashamed to seek help
to conduct research so that we can drive
changes forward in society and
communities and finally is to make help
more accessible so that people
everywhere in malay
because we offer online counseling can
reach out and get the help that they
need and that's definitely needed
because we don't have enough mental
health professionals in Malaysia so
anyone at psychology best major ever
okay but the thing is you know just
having more caregivers more mental
health professionals isn't enough to
build a mentally healthy society we need
everyone to play a part because our
societies become great when people
realize that they are the society in
every area of human accidents you would
find someone who had or has a mental
health condition authors like Dame JK
Rowling's who wrote Harry Potter
politicians like Sir Winston Churchill
in business the co-founder reddit Alexis
Ohanian athletes the most decorated
Olympian of all times Michael Phelps the
swimmer Muse in music Lady Gaga and and
every child's favorite character actress
Kristen Bell who plays Anna in frozen so
the list goes on and so the fact is we
benefit when we include people with
mental health conditions in our society
we're better off if we write them off if
they write themselves off we would not
have achieved as much as we have today
so inclusion makes there's a better
society better communities to listen
it's for our sake so here comes my
challenge to you guys and it's not going
to take a lot of time I need your help
to change the way we think and act
around mental health the first thing is
to understand and communicate two
fundamental points about mental health
conditions to those around you number
one when someone has a mental health
condition it is not their fault they
didn't
use it and it's not due to some single
flaw like bad genes or bad brain wiring
our state of mental health at any moment
is the result of many different factors
okay including a genetic material a
physical and biological health our
social environment that we're in and all
of us are diverse we all have our own
experiences and own personalities that
contribute a role now when the
combination of all these things are in
good balance we're mentally healthy
right we can our mind is clear we feel
all right you know not bad but good like
pumped and we can act productively and
fruitfully when the combination of these
things are non imbalance of mental
health deteriorates again not a choice
and that was actually one of the most
frustrating things when I was depressed
my inability to choose why couldn't I
just snap out of it and feel good
because nobody chooses to be unwell but
we can choose to reach out and get help
which brings me to my second point there
is something to be done mental health
conditions are treatable now there are
many different types of treatments
bottle focus on the two most common ones
that you come across the first is
psychological treatment and so that
focuses on helping you become more aware
of how you feel think and act and guide
you to make changes in these areas so
that you feel better and then you act
and think in healthier ways and the
second is medical treatment which often
uses medication to help you manage the
symptoms and that's used alongside with
psychological treatment now they are
downsides to getting help it costs you
time money and someone might find out
about it but you're making a winning
position when you decide to get help
because it's avoiding the forwards cost
and consequence
if you get worse but more importantly
you're investing in yourself your health
and your potential and the second one
for all of us here I want to encourage
us to make a change today along with our
theme I start with yourself and your
mental health so in the busyness of
today's life we were rushing from class
to class we're working with meetings
were setting up TEDx talks they were
working I think 2:00 a.m. you know this
morning we so easily forget to check in
with ourselves and to notice how we're
doing
so stop phones now I know some of you
are watching your phones now I can't see
anything but I suspect so just stop for
a while breathe right and listen notice
how your body your mind your emotions
feel like what's going on how's it doing
well maybe it's not going so well and if
you notice something is not going so
well talk to a mental health
professional just a friendly chat
nothing serious tell them what's going
on what does it feel quite right and
then you can decide where the further
care will be a benefit to you now I also
encourage you to do this at the first
sign something doesn't feel right
there's a great analogy of mental
healthcare to cancer care women are
encouraged to do regular self checks for
lumps if to detect any early signs of
breast cancer men are also asked to do
early checks to just discover any early
science of what could be testicular
cancer why because it's better to get
well than wait to get worse and so the
same goes for mental health conditions
right but so maybe you have noticed a
sign but you push it away
because
you should be tough because it's your
problem and you should handle it alone
and you don't want to be weak but caring
about the state of your mind and your
feelings is not a weakness it is
strength it's wisdom it's compassion for
yourself and then from there extended
the same wisdom and compassion to those
around you
lecturers you might notice students who
are struggling academically show
compassion to them you know falling
behind and maybe not coming to class not
doing well academically are common signs
of something's not quite right inside
and maybe for the rest of us if you have
friends or family members who maybe
start acting differently a little bit
more difficult to be around show them
compassion when you're in doubt err on
the side of compassion and why because
even though all of us are different on a
much much deeper level we're more alike
than otherwise we have the same
frailties limitations we have the same
strength the same spirit we come from
the same source so beneath the mental
health condition there is a part of that
person the essence of the person that
remains untouched by the condition and
if you look for it you will find it and
you can then relate to the person like
just another human being so I ask you to
join me join us in relating to one
another on that deeper level and if we
do that when we start doing that we
would change together to be better
people in a better society thank you
very much
[Applause]