How to write about mental health
As authors, how we write characters is important. We have a responsibility to ensure we don’t discriminate or perpetuate harmful stereotypes, especially when it comes to complex issues such as identity and mental health.
That said, we don’t want to only write likeable characters. Nuance is key, after all. However, in order to avoid undue harm, we have to do our research to make sure our characters’ motivations and reasoning is clear. If they are discriminatory, unlikeable, or villains, make sure those flaws are part of their characterisation and not an accidental faux pas on your part as a writer.
How do we do this? We educate ourselves. Here are 7 things to consider when writing about mental health.
Don’t make it a defining characteristic
Do you know what people with poor mental health don’t do?
Talk about it all the time.
And if they do, it’s usually because they’re sharing their experience to help others, they’re bonding with someone who’s opened up to them, or they’re in therapy.
Poor mental health is exasperating and – dare I say it – oh-so-boring. People with PMH are exhausted by their low mood. They don’t relish in it, and it’s not a cool character quirk they show off at dinner parties.
People with PMH are affected, not defined by it.
Understand the nuance
Someone with poor mental health doesn’t necessarily have a diagnosis (e.g. bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, depression, PTSD etc.) However, if you’re writing about people or characters that do, tread very carefully. Diagnoses are complex, and not every person with the same diagnosis shows the same patterns of behaviour.
I'd go as far as to say that, unless you've suffered/do suffer from one of these conditions yourself, or know someone who does and is happy to cross-check your work, don't write about them. Unless you've been through it, you just don’t know what accidental harm or painful trope you might be perpetuating.
As writers, it's our responsibility to eradicate harmful stereotypes.
Depression doesn't equal creative genius
Sure, the arts help people with poor mental health or low mood, but they’re not mutually exclusive.
Creativity is an outlet and a tool used for healing, but talent and craft still exist outside of that. For example, Van Gogh was an incredible artist, but he painted his famous sunflowers during a period of good mental health and hope. At his lowest, he cut off his ear and didn’t pick up a paintbrush for months.
We tend to glamorise poor mental health and forget that there is nothing cool or edgy about feeling low and numb.
Which leads me to my next point…
Poor mental health isn't a kooky character quirk
Not every person who sits outside of society's vague standards of normalcy has poor mental health. The need to give everyone who's different a tragic backstory is an overdone trope. It might make you feel better or soothe the shame you feel towards your own need for validation, but most people are quirky because they're happy with who they are (shock, horror!)
It's also worth noting that people with PMH react differently. Sure, some drink to excess, smoke too much and act recklessly. But more often than not, those with PMH find it hard to motivate themselves. They stay in bed, withdraw, spend time reflecting, and look for ways to distract themselves – like reading a book or binge-watching TV.
You’re not ‘cured’ because you find love
Poor mental health and the subsequent recovery journey is long and arduous. It’s life work. It doesn’t go away because you fall in love.
Of course, happy chemicals can and do ease symptoms. Exercise, laughter, love, and a renewed purpose all go a long way. But the reason/s you suffered to begin with don’t miraculously disappear. You’re irrevocably changed by periods of PMH, and you learn lessons you carry with you forever. Anyone who’s loved someone with poor mental health will know the highs and lows well. We’re not constant. We fluctuate as our thoughts, environment, wellbeing, and hormones do.
Don’t make it all doom and gloom
There's a misconception that those with poor mental health suffer 24/7. In reality, it comes in waves and is often affected by various complex and nuanced triggers – some of which take us a while to figure out.
The rest of the time, it's a reflective journey full of self-compassion, self-care and introspection. It's about learning when our bodies are telling us to take a break before we break and using those alarm bells as an excuse to take a bath, read, write, sing, cuddle, sleep, and eat lots of yummy soul food, which includes pizza and chips! (No toxic positivity here, folks!)
In short, there's a lot of collateral beauty when it comes to PMH. Even in darkness, there are still stars.
Extroverts also get depressed
Poor mental health might lend itself to the introvert life, but that’s a side-effect, not a characteristic. Everyone can suffer from PMH. Like a moonlit shadow, it's different depending on who it's reflecting.
We hear this all the time, but the fact PMH doesn't discriminate is why we should be kind, always. It's the only trope we need to see more of in the world.
