We all receive messages about mental health from a wide variety of sources. There's family, friends, teachers, religious leaders, social media, podcasts, TV, movies, books, music, the news, and more.
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Unfortunately, some of these messages tell us that we should ignore our feelings, suffer in silence, that seeking help is a sign of weakness, or that mental illness doesn't even exist. They might also tell us that mental illness is a personal failure, ignoring the impact of genetics, environment, societal problems, and trauma on mental health.

Altogether, this is called "mental health stigma."

It's hard to filter out all the noise, but ultimately, you get to decide what you believe about mental health. If this feels difficult, ask yourself what you would tell a friend who is struggling, then try telling that to yourself.