Mental Illness: The First Step Is Deciding to Seek Help

Asahi Shimbun Morning Edition – September 12, 1998

Among the many stressful events a person may experience in life, the death of a loved one ranks highest, scoring 100 points on the stress index. Divorce is rated at 73 points. That seems understandable. Marriage scores 50 points, though—it makes one pause and wonder how to interpret that.

The film Ordinary People, directed by Robert Redford, portrays the anguish of a family coping with mental illness in a deeply realistic manner. It won the Oscar in 1980.

After the accidental death of the elder son, the younger son begins to contemplate the meaning of marriage and familial love. He endures days of depression and even attempts suicide. Through various conflicts with his family, he eventually overcomes his psychological crisis. A quiet, unimposing psychiatrist persistently works with him toward recovery—an impression that lingers from the film.

In the United States, having a personal psychiatrist has long been considered a status symbol. In Japan, too, we are finally beginning to see mental health clinics appearing here and there in city streets.

However, even now, deciding to consult a psychiatrist still seems to require considerable resolve. Some people visit spiritual healers, undergo waterfall meditation training, or even spend extended periods on farms—wasting both time and money—before finally turning to psychiatric care.

Despite living in a high-tech, culturally rich society, our attitudes toward mental illness remain far from modernized. Naturally, we psychiatrists, as well as public mental health institutions, must acknowledge our own shortcomings in fulfilling our roles.

Having worked as a psychiatrist for over 20 years, I have met many people struggling with mental illness. I've learned a great deal from my patients, and recently I’ve come to feel that they even help me perceive the changing currents of society.

In this column, I will introduce various examples of mental illness through the experiences of anonymous patients and characters from films. I hope this will offer something useful for the mental well-being of people living in today’s world.