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> This recurrent story where extremely intelligent people are battling mental health issues and cannot speak out because the stigma behind this issue is too dam

> This recurrent story where extremely intelligent people are battling mental health issues and cannot speak out because the stigma behind this issue is too damaging is why we need to normalize the discourse around mental health if we want to avoid this type of tragedies. Where exactly is the "stigma" of mental health in tech nowadays? We're blasted day and night to the point where apparently every other person is "battling mental health issues". Maybe there's a deeper issue here than "stigma" and seeing overpriced therapists.

naikrovek 6y ago
> Where exactly is the "stigma" of mental health Are you blind? It's EVERYWHERE. ALL THE TIME.
QuadmasterXLII 6y ago
There is no stigma in the pretty words from HR and massive stigma in the actions of HR
- zarkov99 6y ago
  What does HR have to do with anything/?
  - idclip 6y ago
    They can tell us about their fruit baskets and flat hierarchies. HR is often a great example of how fucked it all is. (Good humane HR is rare)
  - goldenchrome 6y ago
    HR is the conservative arm of execs. They're responsible for setting company policies that reduce the risk of employee disputes and increase the chance of employees staying productive. That's why they say "HR isn't your friend". They have an outsized impact in large, chaotic companies and as a result they end up shaping the culture. HR is the lackey serving the demands of the capitalist machine.
  - imtringued 6y ago
    If you admit you are chronically ill in the workplace you admit you won't ever be as productive as other "healthy" (aka those who didn't admit they are ill) employees. During layoffs you'll be the first to go.
- bilbopotter 6y ago
  Exactly this. It's all we care then if it impacts your work - boom you're out.
abootstrapper 6y ago
I mean, given the demands of modern society, I wouldn’t be surprised if every other person was honestly battling some kind of mental health issues at some point. I mean hell, it’s tough enough being sentient and dealing with mortality, throw in social issues, politics, propaganda, conspiracies, lack of health care, lack of social safety nets, caring for dependents, dating, paying bills, social media, “Instagram culture,” and a god damn pandemic. It’s rough out there.
- throwaway201103 6y ago
  Look a few generations back and reset your worldview. Been drafted into combat lately?
  - abootstrapper 6y ago
    I agree. The good old days were terrible. No doubt many suffered through considerable mental anguish. Unfortunately, this knowledge does not usually help people currently living with depression or similar mental illness. It’s like, “I can’t pay my mortgage and I don’t where my family will live, but Grandpa was a POW in Nam, so no worries!”
    - throwaway201103 6y ago
      Yeah, doesn't take it away but that perspective can make it more bearable. "Things could be worse" is a real way to cope with stress.
    - engineeringwoke 6y ago
      Man, grandpa was a POW in 'Nam makes me feel so old. Who's grandparents on this forum are young enough to be in Vietnam?
- adventured 6y ago
  > I mean, given the demands of modern society Modern society is the easiest society that has ever existed. And that's true nearly world-wide. People have never been better off or worked fewer hours at the median. In modern - affluent - society, it's that people have become soft, weak, fragile. The times are not harder, they're easier. People in affluent nations have never been more coddled and protected. What demands are you talking about? Influencers pressuring people to have whiter smiles on Instagram or better abs on TikTok? Someone getting their feelings hurt on Facebook? In the US things were dramatically worse for the bottom 1/2 as recently as the 1970s and earlier. Look up the poverty and hunger rates/issues in the US across the century from 1870-1970. It was barbaric compared to now. The same is true for violent crime, homelessness, and so on. The past 30-40 years have been amazing compared to the past and that holds true for the most of the world. In affluent nations you have a vast number of exceptionally spoiled people that have known very little suffering.
s1artibartfast 6y ago
In my experience, there is is no stigma around saying you have a mental health issue, but still still the expectation that it not impact you work. I tend to agree that the issue isn’t discourse, but that Discourse alone won’t fix the problem.
ViViDboarder 6y ago
As others have said, people seem comfortable enough to talk about mental health in an abstract way, but less so about their particular needs. You seem to have a particularly skeptical view though doubting stigma and casting doubt into therapy as well. Your comment is actually a perfect example of stigma. I’ve struggled with anxiety before and saw a therapist for a while and benefited greatly from it. It was expensive, sure, but not over priced. Less hourly than I make. I didn’t really talk about it much at work, but I am open about it now. On top of that, there are less stigma towards certain aspects of mental health and more towards others. I believe anxiety, like I mentioned for myself, is becoming a more commonly discussed topic, but depression or bipolar, for example, still carry stigma that push people into facing these things alone.

naikrovek 6y ago

> Where exactly is the "stigma" of mental health Are you blind? It's EVERYWHERE. ALL THE TIME.

QuadmasterXLII 6y ago

There is no stigma in the pretty words from HR and massive stigma in the actions of HR

zarkov99 6y ago
What does HR have to do with anything/?
- idclip 6y ago
  They can tell us about their fruit baskets and flat hierarchies. HR is often a great example of how fucked it all is. (Good humane HR is rare)
- goldenchrome 6y ago
  HR is the conservative arm of execs. They're responsible for setting company policies that reduce the risk of employee disputes and increase the chance of employees staying productive. That's why they say "HR isn't your friend". They have an outsized impact in large, chaotic companies and as a result they end up shaping the culture. HR is the lackey serving the demands of the capitalist machine.
- imtringued 6y ago
  If you admit you are chronically ill in the workplace you admit you won't ever be as productive as other "healthy" (aka those who didn't admit they are ill) employees. During layoffs you'll be the first to go.
bilbopotter 6y ago
Exactly this. It's all we care then if it impacts your work - boom you're out.

abootstrapper 6y ago

I mean, given the demands of modern society, I wouldn’t be surprised if every other person was honestly battling some kind of mental health issues at some point. I mean hell, it’s tough enough being sentient and dealing with mortality, throw in social issues, politics, propaganda, conspiracies, lack of health care, lack of social safety nets, caring for dependents, dating, paying bills, social media, “Instagram culture,” and a god damn pandemic. It’s rough out there.

throwaway201103 6y ago
Look a few generations back and reset your worldview. Been drafted into combat lately?
- abootstrapper 6y ago
  I agree. The good old days were terrible. No doubt many suffered through considerable mental anguish. Unfortunately, this knowledge does not usually help people currently living with depression or similar mental illness. It’s like, “I can’t pay my mortgage and I don’t where my family will live, but Grandpa was a POW in Nam, so no worries!”
  - throwaway201103 6y ago
    Yeah, doesn't take it away but that perspective can make it more bearable. "Things could be worse" is a real way to cope with stress.
  - engineeringwoke 6y ago
    Man, grandpa was a POW in 'Nam makes me feel so old. Who's grandparents on this forum are young enough to be in Vietnam?
adventured 6y ago
> I mean, given the demands of modern society Modern society is the easiest society that has ever existed. And that's true nearly world-wide. People have never been better off or worked fewer hours at the median. In modern - affluent - society, it's that people have become soft, weak, fragile. The times are not harder, they're easier. People in affluent nations have never been more coddled and protected. What demands are you talking about? Influencers pressuring people to have whiter smiles on Instagram or better abs on TikTok? Someone getting their feelings hurt on Facebook? In the US things were dramatically worse for the bottom 1/2 as recently as the 1970s and earlier. Look up the poverty and hunger rates/issues in the US across the century from 1870-1970. It was barbaric compared to now. The same is true for violent crime, homelessness, and so on. The past 30-40 years have been amazing compared to the past and that holds true for the most of the world. In affluent nations you have a vast number of exceptionally spoiled people that have known very little suffering.

s1artibartfast 6y ago

In my experience, there is is no stigma around saying you have a mental health issue, but still still the expectation that it not impact you work. I tend to agree that the issue isn’t discourse, but that Discourse alone won’t fix the problem.

ViViDboarder 6y ago

As others have said, people seem comfortable enough to talk about mental health in an abstract way, but less so about their particular needs. You seem to have a particularly skeptical view though doubting stigma and casting doubt into therapy as well. Your comment is actually a perfect example of stigma. I’ve struggled with anxiety before and saw a therapist for a while and benefited greatly from it. It was expensive, sure, but not over priced. Less hourly than I make. I didn’t really talk about it much at work, but I am open about it now. On top of that, there are less stigma towards certain aspects of mental health and more towards others. I believe anxiety, like I mentioned for myself, is becoming a more commonly discussed topic, but depression or bipolar, for example, still carry stigma that push people into facing these things alone.