Between 1987 and 2002, 67.5 million antidepressant prescriptions were written in the U.S.; this accounts for almost quarter of the U.S. population. Many of the people taking the medication might, in fact, need it, but do they all? And, are they offered any other alternatives? In the late 1980s, early 1990s, Japanese strictly resisted the use of anti-depressants that Eli Lilly decided against selling Prozac in Japan. By early 2000s, however, Japan became a massive market for anti-depressants after removing what Bradley calls “cultural obstacles.”[1] All it took was few years to ‘educate’ people about the importance of those medications in their life. Huge financial investments, media shaping public view, and continued medical education funded by pharmaceutical companies are clear conflict of interest that most people tend to ignore. All those facts make me question who is really benefiting from Bell’s Let’s Talk initiative? It is a double edge sword, removing the stigma by ‘normalizing’ mental illness is a good intention, yet are we offered any alternative, other than the biomedical model?
​
     Junger, in his book Tribe, notes how history has never witnessed such high rates of depression and mental illness. As opposed to the traditional tribal culture where everyone is involved in a meaningful community role and purpose, modern Western culture, he adds, and I totally agree, makes us feel un-necessary and unimportant, which is one of the main reasons behind modern-day affective disorders.[2] Dr. Gabor Maté sees that a person with schizophrenia in a tribal culture holds a better chance of survival and well being than one following the Western medical model.[3] Our view on mental illness cannot be removed from the person’s context and culture. Our Western materialistic society focuses on achievements and possessions cutting off emotional, social, and spiritual needs, which, according to Maté, separates us from ourselves and paves the road for pathology.[4] Loneliness, is radically different from solitude. Loneliness is not about being alone; it is rather about the lack of belonging and the feeling of unworthiness. Belonging is a stepping-stone to our independence, freedom, and maturity.[5] Our self-image, self-esteem, and self-worth are major components of how we perceive and interact with our surrounding. And, this self-worth is defined within the context of the whole community.

       Taking a closer look at Western Muslim community, one notices the oppression, cultural stigma, and social isolation enforced upon people living with mental illness.[6] Attributing pathology to lack of faith is a way of blaming the victims for their own affliction. Sometimes, society could be more coercive towards people with disability than their physiological or physical limitation.[7] Initiatives working at eliminating social barriers and stigmas are so much welcome, they will allow disabled people to better integrate into the society and assume better responsibility for their own life.[8] But, are they truly authentic?

      Foucault, the famous French philosopher and social theorist, argues that coercion is no longer a direct phenomenon; it is rather a series of subtle disciplinary practices,[9] which gently causes the oppressed to internalize their own oppression. People start to discipline their own actions to comply with the ‘norm’ whatever the coercive power defines as ‘norm.’ The process happens in such a subtle way that most people do not even notice they are changing (like the Japanese cultural change discussed earlier). The hegemony of normalcy becomes a tyranny enforced by media ads, movies, novels, and the like.[10] In a way, eugenic practices are still applied to date albeit in a much subtle and ‘socially acceptable’ methodology. The most affected are people “located at the intersections of difference.”[11] Without realizing it, this difference, or ‘deviation from the norm’ becomes their identity. Replacing normalcy by ‘diversity,’ as the new trend is going here in Canada, does not quite solve the dilemma of mental illness discrimination either. In an open global economy where consumerism and lifestyle define one’s identity, the diversity picture does not make room for non-consumer mentally or physically disabled individuals.[12] 
​
       If we are to tackle the mental illness issue, we need to go beyond the psychiatric, genetic, biomedical, and even psychotherapeutic models, taking societal, cultural, intersectional, political, spiritual/religious, economic, and historical sides into account. We need to find alternatives and collectively work at raising human awareness.


[1] Bradley Lewis, Depression: Integrating Science, Culture, and Humanities (New York: Routledge, 2012), 73.

[2] Sebastian Junger, Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging (New York: Harpercollins Publishers, 2016), 10.

[3] Gabor Maté, The Myth of Normal (2016). From YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_j5mmBa4mw (accessed October 30, 2017).

[4] Gabor Maté, The Myth of Normal.

[5] Jean Vanier, Becoming Human, (Toronto: House of Anansi Press, 2010), 35.

[6] Sima Barmania,“Islam and depression,” The Lancet 4 (2017): 669.

[7] Tom Shakespeare, “The Social Model of Disability.”

[8] Mohammed Ghaly, “Disability in the Islamic Tradition,” Religion Compass 10, no. 6 (2016): 150.

[9] Michel Foucault, “Docile bodies” in Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison. (Vintage Books, New York, NY, 1979).

[10] Lennard J. Davis, “Introduction: Normality, Power, and Culture,” 10.

[11] Nirmala Erevelles and Andrea Minear, "Unspeakable Offenses,” 359.

[12] Lennard J. Davis, The End of Normal: Identity in a Biocultural Era (Michigan: University of Michigan Press, 2014), 1-14.

​Grandma was right… Eat your vegetables!!! From a health standpoint, vegetables are unbeatable foods: naturally nutrient-rich; better tasting than a vitamin pill; low in calories; high in fiber and packed with disease-fighting, anti-oxidants and anti-cancer phytonutrients. Although fresh is best, still all types of vegetables are nourishing and delicious – fresh, frozen, canned or juiced.
 
To maximize your health with vegetables, nutrition experts suggest at least 3 to 5 servings per day – but why stop there? With so many ways to enjoy this goodness, you could easily eat vegetables at breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks.  Here are a dozen daily ways to treat yourself to good health!

•  Asparagus: Saute in olive oil with garlic and a hit of lemon zest for a refreshing and seasonal dish. Roasted asparagus is a great finger food for snacking on!
  
  
• Broccoli and cauliflower: Versatile and very healthful – eat them raw (with dip if

            you like) in a salad or even a slaw or cooked (boiled, steamed,, stir-fried, grilled or sautéed)

• Carrots: Sweet, crunchy, good for your teeth, eyes and heart! Perfect raw (as a snack or salad) or cooked in a stew, soup or casserole.

 

• Peppers: Green, red, yellow, orange or even purple!  Enjoy peppers in a salad, stir-fry, or casserole or as a snack.

 

• Spinach: A salad of baby spinach leaves with pears or apples can turn anyone into a real spinach lover. You can mix it with yogurt for a fresh dip or cook it with tomato sauce and cilantro.

 

• Onions: The zesty onion family (scallions, leeks and garlic, too!) offer powerful antioxidant nutrients that boost your immunity and fight inflammation.

 

• Peas: Fresh, frozen or even canned, peas are a treat to eat and they are very popular with small children.

 

• Beets: If you’ve never liked beets, try them in a new way – like roasted, grilled or lightly steamed in the microwave.  They greatly reduce inflammation and fight oxidation and cancer-cells.
  
  
• Mushrooms:  Although not strictly vegetables, just a mushroom or two adds rich flavor to a casserole, soup, stew, stir-fry or even a tossed green salad.

 

• Leaf and romaine lettuce: Rule of thumb for a healthy salad – the darker green or red the lettuce leaves, the more nutrients you get.

 

• Green, yellow or purple beans: Like their pea ‘cousins,’ beans offer some fibre and a little bit of protein, along with a lot of vitamins and minerals.

 

• Tomatoes: Cooking increases the availability of some tomato nutrients – so enjoy sauce, paste and soups.

 
 
Many people don't eat vegetables until dinner. Make a commit to your health - Check off the new ways you want to try to enjoy more veggies during the day:
 
I can add vegetables at breakfast by:
 
□ Adding vegetables like spinach, mushrooms, onion, green or red peppers to an omelet
 
I can add vegetables at lunch and snack by:
 
□ Adding leafy greens, cucumber, or peppers to sandwiches
 
□ Adding different vegetables to a green salad, like broccoli, green beans, asparagus or peas
 
□ Adding a bag of sugar snap peas, carrots, peppers, celery and/or zucchini sticks to my snack

□ Adding extra vegetables to soup
 
□  Choosing kale chips or nori instead of potato chips
 

​ 
Jill Bolte Taylor, in her book a stroke of insight, says all it takes is 90 seconds for the body to process the hormonal and neurotransmitter reactions associated with negative emotions such as fear, worry, frustration, or sorrow… if you turn those emotions into stories, though, they may last forever. All we need to do is simply acknowledge them until they go away – just 90 seconds. Do not turn them into stories, do not feed the anger, fuel the pain, or pump up the fear; do not hold on to them but also do not push them under the carpet hoping no one will notice – they will still be there for you to clean up later on, this time with much more damage involved.
 
The stories our fears are feeding fall into two categories: worry and grief.
Worry is when we project our fears onto the future and grief is when we drag our past stories along into our present and allow them to shape our life and ache our heart and soul.
 
In his book, Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers, Robert M. Sapolsky says that zebras do experience life trauma. Attacked by a lion or seeing a tiger devouring their cub, they experience fear, pain, and grief but they do not attach any stories to the feelings, they fully experience the event with all what it triggers from hormones and neurotransmitters, then they flip the page and change the scene…
 
Some people have this amazing gift of ‘flipping the page’, you see them cheerful, happy, and bouncing soon after a life trauma hits them… sometimes, it is really a gift, they do live in the moment, fill their heart with peace, faith, and trust and let life flow and unfold as they go… yet, in many cases, the page flipping is just a denial mechanism or a mask they wear hiding their true unbearable pain even from their own selves… they still write the stories in their subconscious mind and shove it under a pile of fake laughter and joy. This is not a healthy way of experiencing emotions. They might get by for a while, but these stories will one day resurface from the shadow and haunt them. Their stories may start as subtle Body Whispers®, but soon, the screams will force them to wake up and really face their fears.
 
Facing our fears starts with the inner work. It starts with true belief that we live in a purposeful world, that God is wise, merciful, and just and that every event, challenge, or ordeal carries a valuable lesson and meaning that might or might not reveal itself with time. Yes, we might never understand ‘why.’ Deep in our hearts we need to believe that there is a valuable reason… when we reach this stage of faith, belief, trust, and surrender, we will finally be ready to let go of the fear.
 
It might take weeks, months, or even years.  You can’t rush it… “You can’t make a rosebud open by hitting it with a hammer” as R. N. Ramen says… Let the process unfold, be gentle with yourself, be compassionate towards your vulnerability… just keep doing the inner work one baby step at a time: Breathing, praying, meditating, reading, learning, getting therapy, hiring a life coach… whatever it takes, just keep it up and running.