Narrative Essay Example about The Importance of Mental Health

For many, mental health is a topic of discussion that’s avoided. Some believe that it’s very important and something that needs to be talked about. Others believe it isn’t that important or that mental illness simply isn’t real. For me, my opinion on the topic has changed over time. I used to not be very aware and did not care that much about mental health. Only until I personally was affected by it did I understand its importance.

At a young age, my grandmother passed away. Shortly thereafter, my sister left the house and cut ties with my family. I was not only grieving with the loss of my grandmother, but also not knowing where my sister was or if she was ever coming back. I was devastated, but I didn’t have time to grieve. Everyone in my household became irritable, lashing out when faced with a minor inconvenience. Talking about my feelings became difficult since nobody wanted to bring the situation up. I felt like I was on an island, with nobody around to help.

My middle school years only made things worse for me. I always felt like I was bothering someone, or that I was being a disturbance. Making friends was a challenge because of my somber demeanor. My grades were plummeting because I couldn’t find the motivation to finish my homework. Things were getting bad. Nearing the end of 8th grade, I was at my lowest low. 

At this point, I knew something was wrong. I constantly felt tired, I couldn’t pay attention in class, I wasn’t motivated to do anything, and I couldn’t be bothered to do things I used to love doing like video games or sports. I talked to my mom, and she suggested that we see a therapist. I had no idea what a therapist was like since I had never been to one. To be quite honest, after looking it up I thought it was a scam. Why would I pay someone money to talk for an hour? The lady we visited changed my mind, however. She specialized in children and asked me a lot of questions right off the bat. They were things I had never been asked before. “How are things going around the house?” “How does that make you feel?” “Why do you feel unmotivated?” It felt good knowing that at least someone cared. After that, she had me do activities out of a booklet and on a laptop. Later I found out those were used to diagnose me with ADHD and Major Depressive Disorder.

While the diagnosis and the eventual use of medication helped, it didn’t solve everything. I still went to therapy and explained the way I felt. I started to gain confidence and things were looking up. I reached out to more people, involved myself with groups and clubs, and tried to stay more on top of my schoolwork. While things weren’t perfect, the progress was satisfying. Knowing that I could get through difficult times inspired me to do more and go beyond what I thought was possible. The people around me cheering me on and encouraging me to keep going made things a lot easier as well.

I have a lot of room for improvement, but I want to prove that people who are suffering from mental illnesses aren’t weak. Reaching out to others was the best thing I could have done for myself, and I want others to feel the same way.  I’m grateful for all the supportive people in my life, they’ve helped me to realize how important my own mental health is. Their kindness inspires me to work through my problems instead of letting them hold me back. Only through them would I have realized how important mental health truly is.