Op-ed on the death of Robin Williams A comedic man, so full of life, clever with a rare talent of humor. Robin Williams aged 63, was found dead in his home in California on the 11th of august 2014 of suspected suicide. It’s so hard to imagine Williams could have been suffering from a mental illness as cruel as depression. We imagine movie stars to live a life far from our “normal” lives and find it hard to realize sometimes mental illness can affect anyone regardless of social status. Its not just that he was famous, rich and funny but also that Robin Williams had such a positive and high energy level that came across through his work. He’s an example of how appearances can be deceiving, and that humor especially, can be an extreme cover …show more content…
Williams on CNN. Williams death is fastly becoming an awareness campaign representing depression and suicide in men, with popular news articles on his death featuring help and suicide hot lines, its clear that Williams death is leaving more than a tragedy behind, but also hopefully a revolution in men’s health and suicide awareness. Up to 90% of all people who commit suicide have been diagnosed with depression or some other form of mental illness, Robin Williams being a part of that percentage. Another shocking statistic is that its estimated in the United States, one person will die as a result of suicide every 13 minutes. With facts like these, we can’t ignore the growing issue and taboo of depression in men and mental health of both genders overall. If we acknowledged the mental illness that is depression and accepted it more in groups that are not commonly associated with it such as celebrities and grown men, Robin Williams could still be here …show more content…
Why is this illness any different? This mental illness is just as relevant and serious as any other, if even more deadly as it can be so well hidden under a mask of humor that no one recognizes the symptoms and warning signs until its too late. Men often suffer depression in silence for fear that a mental illness could hurt their reputation and are worried about the harmful stigma that could affect them if they went public/shared with friends and family or seeked help. The stereotype of masculinity is stopping men from speaking out, which if you think about it is ridiculous, it’s the 21st century? Mental illness does not favor a certain group of people; it can affect anyone from anywhere living any kind of lifestyle. Why is a life-threatening disease seen as a weakness and a liability in a person? Its thoughts like these, which are causing the percentage of suicide to rise in males. We could look further into Robin Williams’s life, his personal life and professional for clues and ideas for the cause of his depression when really, there is no cause of it. Depression is what it is, and that’s the problem people don’t seem to understand, we still look at it as something a person has control over, like being able to snap out of it when they need too. Reality isn’t