About This Episode

Situational factors play a part, like losing your job or the death of a close family member. 

These have an impact on our mental health, and we cannot just ignore them.

– Shakia Mayer

“You’re crazy!”

It’s a phrase often carelessly thrown in conversations without any second thought as to how it affects the person being referred to as “crazy”. Why should we even be careful, right? After all, it’s just a joke.

But is it just a joke?

We think words never hurt, but they actually do. That’s why this episode is centered around shedding light on the various stigmas surrounding mental illness and why we should all be thinking about the state of our mental health.

And I’m delighted to have with me Shakia Mayer, a licensed mental health clinician, and personal development coach. My time with Shakia was super enriching and it awakened me to some of the most crucial issues surrounding mental health.

According to Shakia, when we talk about mental illness, we’re looking at a person’s mood, behavior, way of thinking, emotions, and his or her ability to self-regulate.

But what struck me the most was the connection between living in impoverished, lower-income communities and having post-traumatic stress disorder.

Shakia and I also go through various mental health conditions, symptoms of people who may be suffering from mental illness, and how to find support for you or your loved one who may be struggling with said conditions.

October may be mental health awareness month, but we should all prioritize our mental health all year round and continuously educate and enlighten ourselves about each other’s plight, but more importantly, those who are suffering from various mental illnesses. Listen to this episode to know more.

In this conversation, we discuss:

• Mental health is something we all have as it equates to positive emotional and social wellbeing
• How words hurt and not only create a wound for people suffering from mental illnesses, but the negative talk actually adds to the stigma
• The stigma of asking for help as a sign of weakness and lacking willpower
• We all have a different level of normal, yet people expect each other to act the same way
• People can mask their mental illness by staying functional, keeping with appearances, but are already suffering in silence
• Types of mental illnesses diagnosis have been broken down into categories, severity, and level of functioning
• How does living in impoverished communities tie with experiencing PTSD
• Acknowledging biological factors increase the risk of developing a mental illness
• Being in a domestically violent situation or relationship, or even being abused as a child could also impact someone’s mental health and potentially give them some sort of mental illness
• Symptoms to watch out for if someone is suffering from depression
• How telling someone to “just smile” is actually invalidating them and their struggle
• Boundaries and communication are still important in helping someone with a mental illness

Episode drink: 

Honey Grapefruit Mimosa

Ingredients:

• Fresh grapefruit
• Honey
• Prosecco

Connect with Shakia: 

• LinkedIn
• Facebook
• Website
• Instagram

Connect with Cassandra:

Is marketing your business making you feel overwhelmed, frustrated, stressed out; less than opulent?  Are you ready to create the opulent outcomes that you desire in your business?

Schedule a complimentary discovery consultation via this link: https://calendly.com/cassandraalexis.

Tune in to the Crowned Opulence Podcast on your favorite podcast app and join the conversation on Facebook and Instagram.  Have a mimosa that you want to have featured or a conversation that you want to hear about on the show let me know at https://www.crownedopulencepodcast.com/.

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