THE cry was, “My mental health matters!” chanted by an eclectic group of Guyanese, mostly young people, as they marched, waving glow sticks and strips on Saturday before last.
Wearing green-and-white T-shirts proclaiming mental health awareness, the group assembled at the Bank of Guyana building at the head of Main Street. They chatted, laughed, and danced to music by DJ Avalanche, all while preparing to show solidarity with those struggling with mental health challenges.
But beyond the lively atmosphere, the march (from the Bank, down Main Street, up Waterloo, and back to the starting point) sought to highlight that here in Guyana, as in the rest of the world, many people battle daily with mental health issues.
By taking the issue to the streets, the Mental Health March also aimed to reduce the ever-present stigma, and lift the shroud of secrecy surrounding those often dismissed as “mad”.
It was another step in an international movement to bring mental health out of the shadows, and acknowledge, as the World Health Organisation (WHO) contends, that “there is no health without mental health”.

When actors, athletes, and other prominent figures began publicly discussing their struggles with anxiety and depression, the world started to take notice. One of the first was the swimmer Michael Phelps, who, in his early career, believed admitting to mental health issues, particularly anxiety and depression, both of which he experienced, would expose vulnerability and give his competitors an advantage. To cope, he learnt to compartmentalise his emotions, but this only caused them to reach uncontrollable levels.

Phelps later confessed to experiencing “post-Olympic depression” following both the 2004 and 2008 Olympics, and finally acknowledged in 2014 that he had a problem that needed attention.
One of the most important lessons he has since learnt, after undergoing therapy, is that admitting vulnerability is a strength; not a weakness. He now discusses his emotions openly with friends and family, and even produced a documentary, The Weight of Gold, to help end the stigma surrounding mental health, particularly for male athletes.

In encouraging others to seek help, Phelps began saying, “It’s okay not to be okay”, a phrase that quickly became a rallying cry for mental health awareness. He openly accepts that his depression and anxiety will not simply disappear, and has developed a strategy that includes physical training and ongoing mental health counselling.
To the outside world, it may have seemed that Phelps, an Olympic legend with 23 gold medals, had nothing to worry about. Yet, despite his extraordinary success, he admitted that after each four-year Olympic cycle, he began “struggling with life”.
He told NBC in an interview, “It’s basically like you get to the edge of a cliff, like, ‘Cool, now what? Oh, I guess I’ve got to wait four more years to have the chance to do it again.’”
When the same feeling returned after the 2008 Olympics, “coming off that high after doing something you’ve set out to do your whole entire life”, Phelps finally recognised the depth of his struggle.
To be continued next week.
DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Guyana National Newspapers Limited.