"Why would you want to kill yourself, you just bought a new car?"

13 days ago, I bought my dream car at 21 years old. 18 days ago, I spent 3 weeks in New York working for the company I love. In 39 days, I graduate a year early as a marketing major and a psychology minor. But what you didn’t know about me is 9 days ago, I took a week’s leave from work to get help for my mental health. Last week, I was provided with precious time to think and grow. In Shawn Anchor’s TED talk, he addresses the key to happiness after being asked why he would waste his time studying happiness at Harvard. Anchors response follows: “Because what that question assumes is that our external world is predictive of our happiness levels, when in reality, if I know everything about your external world, I can only predict 10% of your long-term happiness. 90 percent of your long-term happiness is predicted not by the external world, but by the way your brain processes the world. And if we change it, if we change our formula for happiness and success, we can change the way that we can then affect reality.” This quote should be a huge reminder that just because someone’s external world appears perfect, doesn’t mean they are happy. Challenge yourself and seek help when needed. It’s 2018, but there is still a huge misunderstanding about mental health. It can’t always be about pushing through work, school, and life. We have to shift our focus towards education and treatment. 1 in 5 American’s has a mental illness. (My photos get about 50 likes which means at least 10 of my followers struggle with this condition.) A mental illness is defined as a wide range of conditions that affect mood, thinking, and behavior. A mental illness doesn’t define someone as crazy. Recently, someone asked me “Why would you want to kill yourself, you just bought a new car.” This question makes me even more willing to speak up about my differences because I know the importance of receiving treatment to cope with my conditions. I hope that my willingness to share will help at least ONE person seek treatment and it will challenge at least ONE person to be more educated on mental illnesses.