Bressie Speaks Out About Mental Health Calling It 'Epidemic Of This Generation'

Bressie has long been an advocate for mental health awareness and spoke to the Oireachtas health committee today about the necessity for the government to act in helping young people who are dealing with any kind of mental health issues.

Calling it the 'epidemic of a generation,' Bressie spoke about the reality of the pressures that face young people today. According to The Journal, he addressed the lack of a support system for those who are finding it difficult.

“The reality is our youth, the future of this country, need help. They are exposed to too much, so much is expected from them, and both the external and internal pressures they are being asked to cope with are simply not sustainable, and the result is the great epidemic of this generation."

The stigma that has surrounded issues such as depression, self-harm, and eating disorders is slowly diminishing. However, we are still a country that is only getting to grips with the vast changes that need to be implemented for help to be available to those that need it.

"Agonising suicide rates, disturbingly high anxiety and depression rates, self-harm, eating disorders, OCD … We simply cannot ignore this anymore. We have to be honest and ask ourselves, truly are we doing enough?"

The musician also spoke about his own anxiety and how this spurred him on to try and help others, The Journal are reporting. “[As] a teenager I simply did not have the capacity to cope with an utterly dominant anxiety disorder that seemed hell bent on robbing me of my character and personality at every available opportunity. Crippling insomnia, harrowing panic attacks and incomprehensible self-harm dictated my life, all disguised behind a mask of normality that polarised the general lazy stereotype or label we associate with those with a mental health illness."

His time in school, which should have been enjoyable, was plagued by these problems. "Some days I would sit in my classroom on the verge of fainting as I hyperventilated and fought for air while my teachers continued to teach the class, oblivious to the fact that one of their students was in the midst of a living nightmare. I spent so many of my school days praying that some of our teachers may talk about this, or just say something so I didn’t feel so isolated and terrified. They never did."

Bressie is apparently proposing measures which include having mental health care included in the education curriculum and he is advocating for an increase in funding for organisations that focus on this area. Though he says that the work being done by schools and students is already "powerful," he believes that this is only the tip of the iceberg.

We at CollegeTimes could not agree more with Bressie's call for the government to put a focus on mental health and well-being. Not only is it something that can play a pivotal role in someones college experience, but these are issues that everyone deals with in some way and it is of paramount importance that the resources are there to help anyone who needs it.

To learn more about Bressie's work, check out his website A Lust For Life.