I don’t know anyone who doesn’t love John Oliver. He is the ultimate story teller and oneof my favorite New Yorkers .Here he covers how mental health is portrayed in the media. He uses excellent visuals and evidence to support all of this claims. His sources are fantastic as he is citing studies from Health and Human Services which can be considered reputable government studies. A good thing to remind ourselves is health is much broader than physical health, mental health is just as important. One thing my mom once said once to me is if you don’t have your mental health, you don’t have anything. It truly is the great equalizer.
He states 43.8 million adults in the US have mental health struggles, and 10 million have more serious and advanced issues. He shows the headlines of the studies with short verbatim quotes from each piece. This is an excellent way to report on health studies, but also a great way to frame mental health. There is too much stigma surrounding mental health, particularly if according to these numbers, 13% of the US population may suffer from it. Additionally, instead of just saying its a serious problem, he also works to remove stigma from those who suffer.
Here is SAMSHA’s direct site to get more information on various mental health issues or to find information on treatment options.