David HoggVerified account

In my opinion part of the problem is that media only talks about mental health after someone— typically a male commits a mass shooting. When in reality people that are mentally are significantly more likely to be the victims of gun violence including gun suicide.

I also think the stereotype that girlfriends/wives/partners are expected to help bare the weight of mental health issues is wrong and destructive bc it doesn’t help the guys navigate/address there own mental health if they’re just pushing it off on someone else.

I think some of the hardest times for people is not when they are around others it’s when there alone/board left alone with there thoughts and feelings with nothing left to distract them. Those are the hard times because it requires you to face those issues.

I know from experience both before and after 2/14 that for me those are the hardest times and often when I have had suicidal thoughts which luckily I’ve been able to get help with.

However I never would have opened up about my mental health without extremely supportive/loving friends.

Had those around me not help me realize that extreme exhaustion, lack of appetite, sever lack of motivation, a general lack of interest even in the things I loved most, and wanting to die almost everyday was not normal I might not be here today.

So talk to your friends about how they are really doing— don’t just tweet the phone number for a suicide hotline and think that’s enough because oftentimes those that need help the most are those that are the closest to you because #MentalHealthMatters