When those in a high school in Oakland County, Michigan watched the Netflix series 13 Reasons Why, the premise and themes it focused on hit close to home as the school had also lost one of their students to suicide back in 2013.

While the show has been criticized, many feel it accurately and excellently portrayed present day issues that teens face today including bullying, body-shaming, social media use, abusive relationships, as well as consent and sexual violence, and even the increased risks associated with having access to weapons such as guns in the home. 

Despite this, many at the school including the dean felt the show portrayed little hope, and depicted suicide as the only way out, without highlighting the many mental health resources available and the care/support family and friends frequently provide. This sparked an idea for a project called "13 Reasons Why Not" ...

The project involved 13 recordings from students at the school being played over morning announcements. Each day, on the recording one teen would share a problem they had been struggling with, whether that would be bullying at school or issues in their home life. However, rather than placing blame, at the end of the recording, the student would thank someone, such as another classmate who has helped them and thus provided a sense of hope and encouragement to carry on.

​Since the project has been in place, students who have volunteered recordings have found an outpouring of love and support from their classmates, and have found that their school has become a community where individuals feel safe and comfortable sharing their mental health struggles. A bright idea not only to raise awareness and encourage ongoing discussions on these issues, but to show what 13 Reasons does not ... that help, hope, and support do exist. 

"“I watched the series. I thought it accurately depicted the problems that teenagers in high school are facing now. But it was incredibly troubling to me that suicide was portrayed as being, almost, inevitable, like she had no other option,” said Fine.
​
“The idea was to come up with 13 reasons why not, because that was not portrayed in the show. … Even though it can get very dark, there is always hope. Our message is that there are no 13 reasons why. Suicide is not an option."

To find out more, visit:
"Oxford High School students begin project called '13 Reasons Why Not'" by Monica Drake (Oakland Press News)

The Netflix original series 13 Reasons Why has received considerable attention over the last few months since its initial worldwide release on March 31. The feedback has been mixed however, and has generated a fair bit of controversy over the portrayal of suicide and self-harm, leading Netflix to post advisory warnings. Many mental lhealth organizations and advocates, along with mental health professionals, have since been speaking out about their concerns regarding the show.

Psychiatrist Dr. Stan Kutcher in Halifax, has been working with the IWK Health Centre and Teenmentalhealth.org to generate an online resource for teens, parents, and educators on how to address concerns regarding the show and discuss mental health issues with young people. 

The resource (link below) specifically highlights concerns such as how the show glamorizes or romanticizes suicide/self-harm raising the concern that there may be an increase in such behaviours by vulnerable youth, presents adults/others as unknowing or unhelpful, and most importantly does not address mental illness which often underlies suicidal thoughts and behaviours. 

However, more importantly, the website provides visitors with a "set of talking points", an important document that should be provided to those who watch the series as it both addresses the above concerns, but also guides discussions between youth and their caregivers/educators, and highlights how hope and help are available to those in need.

To find out more, visit:
http://teenmentalhealth.org/news-posts/responding-13-reasons-considerations-schools/

Following suit to Facebook's support features which took effect last year (http://time.com/3723472/facebook-suicide/), Instagram have also begun to launch a series of tools designed with user protection and safety in mind.

More specifically, Instagram's new features include an anonymous reporting tool which one can use to flag worrisome posts such as those with content related to self harm or suicide. After reporting the post, the individual would receive a message of support, as well as suggestions for help such as organization recommendations, local help-lines, and reminders to reach out to loved ones.

"What’s interesting about Instagram’s tool is that it isn’t only triggered by anonymous reporting. Instagram’s app will also direct users to the support message when they search the service for certain hashtags, like the banned search term #thinspo, for example, which is associated with eating disorders."

Additional tools also include the ability to disable comments for posts or create customizable block-lists which prevent certain individuals from commenting on one's posts. Earlier this year, this was an option only available to celebrities, but will soon become an option for all. The idea behind this tool was to reduce online bullying, which often can be quite detrimental to youth's self-esteem, mental wellbeing and ultimately their safety. 

To read more, check out:
https://techcrunch.com/2016/10/19/instagram-tackles-self-harm-and-suicide-with-new-reporting-tools-support-options/

Could Instagram be used to help monitor one's mental health or in screening for depression? A recent study suggests this may just be in our future ...

The study, conducted by researchers at Harvard University and the University of Vermont, analyzed over 43,000 photos posted on Instagram by 166 volunteers. The volunteers were also asked to complete surveys that looked at their social media use, as well as history of mood disorder diagnoses and symptoms of depression.

The results indicated that certain features, such as colour, brightness, and number of faces, of one's online photos may be possible markers for or indicators of depression.

"Those who were depressed tended to post photos with increased hue, decreased brightness, and decreased color saturation. Overall, their photos were “bluer, grayer, and darker.” They also tended to post more frequently and use more Instagram filters, the most popular one for depressed participants being Inkwell, which turns a photo black and white. The most popular filter for volunteers who weren’t depressed was Valencia."
​
To learn more about the study, click here:
https://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/1608/1608.03282.pdf
http://fortune.com/2016/08/22/instagram-diagnose-depression/

After losing his brother-in-law at the age of 23 to suicide, UK rugby league player Luke Ambler took it upon himself to raise awareness for mens mental health. Most notably, Luke has created a club called "Andy's Man Club" where men can come together to chat about their lives and well-being. On top of that, Luke's also started a new social media campaign to spread the message further, where individuals are nominated by friends online to post a picture of themselves giving the the "okay" gesture and with the hashtag #itsoktotalk. 

"He said: “Without any warning Andrew was taken away from all his family and friends by suicide. What is staggering is that 42 per cent of men aged 18 to 45 have considered suicide as an option. 

“Then add to that, the single biggest killer of men under 45 is suicide. Around 4200 men, that’s one man every two hours, a year are taken from this world and their families by suicide, it is quite unbelievable that there isn’t that much awareness. 

“What seems to be a big underlying problem for men is their inability to speak out about what is bothering them.”"

For more about the campaign click here:
http://www.itv.com/news/calendar/2016-08-11/itsoktotalk-rugby-player-launches-male-mental-health-campaign/
http://video.bestthenews.com/video/itsoktotalk-brilliant-new-way-raising-awareness-male-suicide-get-involved-fri-08052016-2256

Early in April, Amber Smith shared two photos of herself on her Facebook page; one in which she is all dressed up, an image she describes as the "normal" version of herself she showcases to the world, and the other of her "true normal" self only she tends to see shortly after she's had a panic attack. Amber posted the photos in an effort to break down the ‪‎stigma‬ of invisible conditions such as ‪‎anxiety‬ and ‪‎depression‬, and demonstrate just how often people assume that because one appears youthful and fine (an image often portrayed by our social media presence), you can’t experience severe and debilitating mental health conditions.Rather Amber's photos work to highlight how mental illness does not discriminate and encourages us to recall the old adage of "not judging a book by its cover". Smith also hopes that her photos helps others who are also struggling in silence and provides them with the courage and encouragement they need to seek help.

"‘Do you know how many people that equates to worldwide?! And yet I’ve been battling with anxiety and depression for years and years and there’s still people that make comments like “you’ll get over it”, “you don’t need tablets, just be happier”, “you’re too young to suffer with that'"...
​
Shockingly, she described a conversation she had recently been a part of, where someone actually had the audacity to ask her: ”Aren’t you too young to be suffering with anxiety and depression? What do you actually have to be depressed about at your age?”

To read more click here: ​http://metro.co.uk/2016/04/06/girl-speaks-out-about-battle-with-anxiety-with-photos-taken-minutes-after-a-panic-attack-5798797/

Catch up on all the news related to mental health and psychiatry!

Online there exists numerous "Confessions" Facebook pages for most Canadian universities including Dalhousie University, McMaster University, and even the University of Toronto where students can share anonymous confessions ranging from the humorous to more troubling and serious issues.

Recently, an article shed light on one of the largest Facebook pages, SFU Confessions, where students have been anonymously submitting stories of ‪depression‬, ‪‎anxiety‬, and ‪‎suicide‬ attempts and ideation.

In this interesting article (link below) the author suggests that though it is important for students to openly discuss their ‪‎mental health‬ issues, the anonymous means Facebook pages such as these provides, only serves to continue perpetuating ‪stigma‬ and fails to help truly support students and connect them to appropriate supports and resources. Rather, the author suggests, we should be encouraging students to have "meaningful" and personal conversations about ‎mental illness‬ with family, friends, or mental health services on campus or in our communities.

What do you think about the issues discussed in this article? Do you think anonymous web or Facebook pages are appropriate or helpful outlets for those facing mental health challenges?

"If individuals are encouraged to only share their struggles when they can fear no social repercussions, then instead of challenging the belief that talking about mental health is shameful or embarrassing, it perpetuates that stigma. Instead of being able to put a face to mental health issues, there remains a shroud of secrecy."

For the full article, click here: http://www.the-peak.ca/2015/11/sfus-culture-of-confessions-obscures-mental-health-issues/