Article written by Dylan Bell.
R U OK day happened recently, and I’m sure I don’t need to explain the importance this day holds to many people suffering from mental illness. The reason I bring up this day is because I, too, suffer from my own mental health problems and this day is something I enjoy seeing because it helps get the message out to millions of people to be aware of their own mental health issues. One of the best and most effective ways of getting people aware of mental health issues is for them to see examples of it in media, and this can range wildly from exceptionally good representations to dangerously negative. Today I shall be talking about the first so, without further delay, I bring you, in no particular order, 6 real representations of mental illness in film and TV.
Tony Stark from Iron Man 3
Something I enjoy immensely about the Marvel films is that they let their male characters have feelings and emotions, and still let them be ass-kicking superheros. Tony Stark is no exception to this. In The Avengers, Tony saves the day by throwing a nuke through a wormhole into an alien spaceship, destroying it. All is well and good, you may think, but, no. Tony almost dies in this scene, and in fact is shocked when he emerges unscathed. In Iron Man 3, we see the fallout of this. He is constantly shown to be repressing his feelings on the issue and whenever the wormhole is mentioned, the world seems to stop around him and he suffers from a panic attack. As someone with anxiety, I can attest that this is portrayed excellently, demonstrating a real understanding of anxiety disorders. It's reassuring to see a male superhero go through problems like this and not be ashamed, showing that strength doesn’t have to be physical.
BoJack Horseman from BoJack horseman
Bet you didn’t expect to see an animated horse on this list. This is a somewhat controversial pick, but hear me out. I will be the first to admit that BoJack shows no signs of someone dealing with their mental illness in a healthy manner, but that is precisely why I chose him. It is an unfortunate truth that not everyone deals with mental illness in healthy ways, and BoJack is one of those people, drowning his sorrows in drugs and alcohol, but doesn’t change the fact that this is a very real representation of what people with depression and anxiety deal with – his constant degrading of himself, his destructive personality destroying everything around him, stemming from his own abusive childhood. This is by no means how someone should deal with their problems, but to not shy away from the fact that some people just do not cope and cannot find any hope in their lives is a very real occurrence, and I applaud this show for depicting that. Season 5 of BoJack Horseman has just been released so I, for one, look forward to seeing if BoJack can at the very least begin to cope in a healthy way.
Edgar Quintero from You’re the Worst
You’re the Worst is a hauntingly real show about real people with real problems. There isn’t much more I can say to describe the beautiful reality of this show. Despite being a cynically comedic show the majority of the time, many of its characters could fill this list. However, I want to talk about Edgar. Edgar is a war veteran who has come home from war and suffers from PTSD, which affects him in severe ways, making him constantly afraid and forcing him to act erratically, and showing him learning to cope thanks to the help of his friends. While a PTSD story never goes unwarranted, this story is extra special as Edgar is a Latino, and statistically Latinos are 80% more likely to ignore or not seek help for mental illness, so it goes unsaid that this is very important to show.
Ellen from To the Bone
To the Bone is a chillingly accurate tale of a girl suffering from anorexia, an illness I rarely see covered in media. It's especially rare that I see it covered well, too, but I am happy to say that this is a beautifully tragic show depicting Ellen going through many traumatic and heartbreaking symptoms of anorexia. What sells this performance are the small touches. For example, Ellen measures her wrists to see if she has gained or lost weight, as well as doing sit-ups in her bed at night. These are symptoms and aspects of anorexia many sufferers have experienced, and only adds to this show's credibility. Also, a small side note: I would like to applaud this show for depicting many different types of people suffering from anorexia – including women of colour and men, people who rarely show or admit to having a problem and statistically are the least likely to come forward and seek help. I encourage everyone to see this film, whether you suffer from anorexia or not.
Stiles from Teen Wolf
Small disclaimer: I do not like this show personally, however the characters in this show are compelling, varied, and clearly good enough to earn a spot on this list. When Stiles was young, his mother suffered and eventually died from dementia and, during this stage, his mother forgot who he was. All of this trauma led him to have severe abandonment issues. Say what you will about the show, but one thing I believe it does right is showing a character's inner trauma. Stiles constantly battles his abandonment issues, going above and beyond what he needs and is capable of to keep his friends close to him because he is too afraid of losing them. He also suffers from frequent panic attacks related to this, including in one chilling scene where he panics and hallucinates his father accusing him of being the reason his mother died, a real fear of his. Although I personally do not like this show, this character does resonate with me and many other people for having a clear and relatable problem.
Jessica Jones from Jessica Jones
Jessica Jones is yet another Marvel property on this list, showing once again their talent for creating realistic mental illness in people. The reason I placed Jessica on this list is because she, too, suffers from PTSD and, while I have already discussed PTSD in a separate section, it is important to point out that the majority of PTSD cases are attributed to war veterans. Although this is well deserved, it is important to see that PTSD can occur in people as a result of many other situations. Jessica gained PTSD from her former lover who sexually, mentally and emotionally abused her. This is also an incredibly powerful series because it doesn’t define Jessica by her disorder – which many other shows do – and allows her to push through her problems and come out of it stronger than ever.
These were just a few characters I or friends of mine have seen which touched us on an emotional level, and there are many more wonderful examples of good representations of characters with mental health problems. I would like to leave you today by telling everyone out there: if you have problems and need help, please do not hesitate to talk to someone. You are not alone, and you can get through this. I will leave places where you can contact below if you believe you are in need of help or just a friendly talk.
Lifeline - 13 11 14
Headspace - https://headspace.org.au/
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