Gen Z and Mental Health: A Relationship where Perception Beats Reality

Sakeenah Kareem
Disclaimer: This article is not a rebuff or trivialization of the increasingly damaging effects caused by poor mental health on the GEN Z population. On the contrary, it is simply a call to order for the small circle of GEN Z who hide under the umbrella of having mental issues to get away with their disrespect and disregard for humanity
One beautiful Saturday morning, Ayo set up his speaker to start blaring out loud and deafening music, a regular habit he indulges in to orchestrate noise pollution in his neighborhood. And no matter the complaints and pleas from his neighbors, Ayo would never accept that he is wrong because according to him – that’s his personality; loud and deafening music is what suits and helps his mental health, hence any attempt to correct his actions signifies threats to his mental health status. However, it doesn’t take one to be a genius to realize, based on this situation that Ayo is taking advantage of the current hype about mental health to shamelessly display his nonchalance about the effects of his actions on others and his lack of courtesy for people, especially seniors and elders.
So who is Ayo? Ayo is a representative of the countless young Nigerians who take so much pride in being a Gen Z and claim to have learnt all there is to ” taking care of their mental health,” without having adequate knowledge of what it truly means to be a Gen Z or what mental health entails. Yet, they take undue advantage of those words to get away with their negative behaviours and make themselves feel good about their actions.
But what exactly does it mean to be GEN Z? Generation Z popularly called Gen Z comprises people born between 1997 and 2012. As GEN Z, we were born right into an already developing era of immense economic, financial and technological advancement which is quite different from the situations of previous generations like Millennials who had to witness the birth of the Internet after their own birth. Thus, the circumstances surrounding our birth placed us at an advantage over our older generations because right from a tender age, we were getting exposed to world-class knowledge, information, technology, skills and overall societal advancement.
But while this exposure counts as a blessing in so many ways, it has somewhat become a nemesis as the majority of GEN Z are beginning to misuse the information they have to justify their negative behaviors. And a great example centers the issue of mental health, which has suffered a lot in the hands of GEN Z, many of whom have no tangible knowledge of what it entails.
If you are one of such people, consider this article a mini lecture on mental health. The history of mental health can be traced back to 1843 when William Sweetzer coined the term mental hygiene. Then in 1893, Isaac Ray, a founder of the American Psychiatric Association, provided a definition of the term, mental hygiene as “the art of preserving the mind against all incidents and influences calculated to deteriorate its qualities, impair its energies, or derange its movements.” Nevertheless, the concept of mental health did not become a subject of discussion in the Nigerian Community until 2018 when the Guardian newspaper published an article titled ‘Young People’s Mental Health Is a Ticking Time Bomb.’ The article also revealed that as at then, 20% – 30% of Nigerians suffer from mental illness but the majority lacked awareness about it. But as at 2022, an article published by the same source revealed that over 60 million Nigerians now suffer from mental health.
Based on these statistics, we can deduce that an alarming number of young Nigerians are truly suffering from mental issues they cannot see or describe and they are not even aware of it. Isn’t that sad? Of course, it is. However, what is more sad and demeaning is the fact that we now have healthy young people who are taking advantage of this reality to manipulate others and cover up their misdemeanors. They make their mental health the center of their life and an excuse for every of their negative actions. For every attempt made at correcting them, this notorious set of GEN Z are quick to use catchphrases like – “If you cannot love me the way I am, then leave me alone,” “Nobody should scold me abeg; my mental health is at stake,” “I did what I did, because that’s what suits my mental health.”
But while these young people might think that they are clever in using their mental health as excuses for their negative actions, they are unconsciously developing toxic personality traits and ignoring corrections that could bring life-changing benefits to them. Even worse, they are pushing people to attribute faulty generalizations to the entire population of GEN Z. Currently, the older generations see them as “lazy and disrespectful youths” who consider any correction, chastising, or attempt to help them as threats to their mental health. As such, those who truly struggle with mental health issues among them are hardly given much-needed priority and attention because who knows? – They could be pretending to be mentally ill just to get away with their wrongdoings.
Hence, for the sake of those who truly need help with their mental health problems and to promote the world’s respect for GEN Z, we must put an end to the manipulative use of mental health and acknowledge the fact that what most of us truly need is a habit or personality redesign. Of course, it is very mandatory that we take care of our mental health. But at the same time, we must pay attention to our habits and actions to ensure that they don’t end up being threats to other people’s mental health.
Ultimately, we must learn to adapt to situations and changes, even if they are not comfortable enough for us to strive. “No be everyday go be soft life.” After all, our life experiences, both good and bad, are character building moments. So rather than using our mental health as excuses to get away from “the hard life,” let’s face the challenges while being the best possible human to others. And if you think you truly have issues with your mental health or have been told that you are exhibiting signs related to specific mental disorders, please do visit a psychotherapist who can offer you the best care.