[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvpmZktlBFs]

According to the World Health Organization, mental health is about being able to cope with the normal stressors of life; to work productively and fruitfully; and to be able to make a contribution to your community. Mental health includes our emotional, psychological and social well-being.

We suffer in solitude, silenced by stigma. All of us need to realize that our mental struggles do not detract from our virility, nor does our trauma taint our strength. We need to see mental health as important as physical health.

We need to stop suffering in silence. We must stop stigmatizing disease and traumatizing the afflicted. Talk to your friends. Talk to your loved ones. Talk to health professionals.

Be vulnerable. Do so with the confidence that you are not alone. Speak up if you’re struggling. Being honest about how we feel does not make us weak; it makes us human. It is time to end the stigma associated with mental illness.