Alyssa Farmer

English Comp II
29 July 2014

Freire, Marlinda. "Mental Health, Culture, Children And Youth." Health and cultures: Programs, services
and care, Vol. 2. 79-119. Buffalo, NY, US: Mosaic Press, 1993. PsycINFO. Web. 9 Aug. 2014.
- One of the main focuses of this paper was to explore the effects of our culture on the youth of
America. Girls see images every day that tell them they need to be skinnier, prettier, and cooler
than every other girl around them. They are told to be strong yet delicate, pretty but athletic,
and dainty but exotic. Little girls are exposed to this at such a very young age. Although girls
would be the obvious victims, little boys are just the same. They are told that they are not
allowed to cry or show emotion. They have to be tough all the time because they are men.
Television, magazines, and the internet are all major influences on what our children believe
that they should be like. Although some would believe that this is more about gender roles, I
believe it also has to do with our society stipulating what the criteria are for each gender, and
forcing each child into that. Every Child is different and should be treated as such. Think of how
many cases of depression or social anxiety would be gone if there were no longer the stigmas
that our society holds.

Vedantam, Shankar. "Patients' Diversity Is Often Discounted; Alternatives to Mainstream Medical
Treatment Call for Recognizing Ethnic, Social Differences." Washington Post 26 June 2005: n.
pag. Print.
- When researching for this project, one aspect that I did not think about was the effect of our
culture on racially and ethnically diverse groups of people. How do people from other cultures
try to assimilate into ours? How would a Mexican-American be effected by the culture in this
country? When diversity is around us, it can be an uncomfortable thing to deal with. When
people that are different are around, it can be hard to understand or accept their way of life.
However, it may do us some good to try to understand the ways that they are accustomed.
When people are different, we can learn and grow from the experiences that they can show us.
This should be remembered in every aspect. Damaging someones mental health because they
are different from you is not the right thing to do.

Ruth, Corinne, and Darcy Gruttadaro. "NAMI Blog: Enough Is Enough: Regulate Restraint and Seclusion
in Schools." NAMI Blog: Enough Is Enough: Regulate Restraint and Seclusion in Schools. National
Alliance on Mental Health, 24 June 2014. Web. 07 July 2014.
<http://blog.nami.org/2014/06/enough-is-enough-regulate-restraint-and.html>.

"End mental health's culture of silence." Daily Post (Conwy, Wales) 2014: Business Insights: Essentials.
Web. 9 Aug. 2014.
- Being a person with a mental health disorder or disease is not the easiest path to walk. Although
they are becoming more accepted in our society, people are still not always as educated about
what these conditions actually are, or how they effect your body. I have often had people ask
me what I am sad about. Depression is not about being sad necessarily. It is about a feeling that
is connected to an emotion. It kills your spirit and makes your body weak. My depression is
cause by a hormone imbalance in my brain. There is nothing wrong with me,

Mayer, Claude-Hlne, and Christina Krause. "Promoting Mental Health And Salutogenesis In
Transcultural Organizational And Work Contexts." International Review Of Psychiatry 23.6
(2011): 495-500. PsycINFO. Web. 9 Aug. 2014.
- Although this article does not directly correlate to my topic, I chose to include it because it
explains how mental health can be affected in contexts where you will need to interact and
work alongside people that may be very different from you. Understanding your own
mental health is important to personal growth. However, understanding other peoples
mental health is important, too. People from other cultures are going to react to everything
differently. Someone from the stress of the Middle East will treat a problem differently than
someone from the United States. Being aware of cultural stresses can be an important part
of the dimension when working with others. Often, we do not know the history, life, or
cultural perspective of individuals who we are around.

"Personal Interview with Austin Cox." Personal interview. 7 July 2014.
- Austin and I have known each other for about six years. He has been through it all. From
depression to suicide attempts, he has been able to explain to me what has impacted him
the most. Because of society and social pressure, He felt that he was not worthy of living. He
thought that he was not worth the life that he had been given. Why does our culture teach
us that perfection is necessary? Why does everyone have to meet certain standards to be
approved by society? Through his struggle, He has learned that the only approval you need
is your own.