Why is mental health so hard to talk about?
I blame the super(wo)man complex. The idea that moms are invincible. The idea that men have to be tough in order to be “good men.”
It’s time to change the conversation.
One thing I started teaching my kids several years ago was that as an adult, I don’t know everything. I actually DON’T know what I’m doing, every single day, every single moment. I’m not an expert. I’ve never raised a kid as old as my oldest. And neither has anyone else.
Personally, we like to model being human in our house. Humans are messy people, aren’t we? We’re not perfect, though we’d like to pretend we are. We’re unpredictable, uncontrolled at times, and downright mean some days. But the good thing about the human condition is there is ample room to repair after a rupture. It’s something we try to model at home, but again, we’re not perfect at it.
Question of the week: Did your parents apologize to you when they messed up?
If you come from my generation (Xennial) or earlier, likely the answer to this question, or at least the mass majority, would be ‘no.’ Why? Because parenting was authoritarian, not gentle, respectful, or any of the other names people are throwing around these days. The parent ruled. We obeyed. Period. And if you didn’t, you were labeled as a trouble maker or a bad kid.
Hear me when I say this: you were neither.
I hear so many stories in my coaching business of hurts and traumas that people have carried with them over the last several decades that have turned into negative narratives in their heads.
We are human. We make mistakes. AND we can own those mistakes.
Want to change the conversation around mental health? Let’s start with admitting we are human. We are messy. We mess up. We’re not perfect. And proceed with caution, care, and grace. And apologize when you mess up. That’s a big one.
