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Welcome to my first entry in this series titled Mental Health in the Crypto Verse.
As you can imagine this topic is very broad and impossible to talk about in a whole book, let alone a blog post. However, as a recent graduate in Psychotherapy and a Crypto enthusiast, I felt the need to try and combine both worlds to raise awareness and include the theme of Mental Health in this new decentralized movement that the world is experiencing.
Most of you might be wondering, how are these two worlds linked? How can the field of investment and decentralization have an influence or effect on Mental Health? Well, Here's my first attempt at putting forward one of the many possible links and risks involved between Mental health and Crypto.
Challenging the Stigma.
For decades, if not centuries, Mental Health has been a victim of stigmatization. It is a topic we are not comfortable talking about in our society. Psychology and Psychiatry have prioritized the medical approach which has caused a lot of pain towards practitioners, clients, and the field itself. Nowadays, there is a sense of shame connected to the topic of Mental Health. People are looked down upon for admitting to having psychotherapy appointments. People are judged for having Mental Illnesses. People also suffer socially and financially due to their issues. Although this stigma is changing, it is doing so at a very slow pace.
The narrative is changing though, and celebrities and social figures are now being hailed as heroes for opening up on their disabilities or struggles and they are inspiring a lot of young adults who suffer from similar conditions to speak up and seek help. However, their social status precedes their illness or struggle and they are mostly applauded due to their status rather than their situation. If the average Joe speaks up about his illness or struggles, the response is likely to not gain any attention at all. People are uncomfortable discussing these topics. Why? Mostly because they don't know-how.
How can the Decentralized Web help?
The Decentralized web seeks to be the internet that we deserve. A new era of communication, technology, and information free from censorship and centralization. An age where you can speak freely without the fear of being censored or scrutinized. An Era where you can find community-built projects which can evolve into a real company with real value and massive impact.
The decentralized web is an age we are moving towards to and the beauty of it is that we all get a say or vote in the direction it will take. We are the people in power who decide the future of Web 3.0. We have the power to leave certain stigmas behind where they belong. We have the power to create projects and involve companies to be more inclusive and aware of topics such as Mental Health and illness. We can have communities that encourage such discussions and support. We can make the internet a better place for people who already have difficulty fitting into this world we live in.
Is it easy? Of course not. People are still going to be challenged and scared of opening up. But we can definitely kick-start a movement towards making it more tolerant and acceptable of people in need.
The Current Struggles
Although there are so many topics that we can get into, I feel like (for the sake of this post) it will suffice to just briefly mention areas where Mental Health can be currently impacted in the Crypto Verse.
- Web 3.0 Avatar NFT - The trend of creating a new online identity. Although this can be seen as a fresh start for some, to start a new identity online without any judgment or stigma. People who suffer from Mental Health issues might struggle with creating or living up to this new identity. Out of shame and guilt, they might purposefully try to ignore their issues instead of owning them. It is much more tempting to start afresh leaving your troubles behind, instead of owning up to them and accepting them as part of your identity.
- Metaverse - A new social system completely based online. An infinite world of 'realities' where (one day) one can find different societies which might have their own set of 'social standards'. How can this impact people who already struggling to fit in the real world due to their conditions? and will the new metaverse realities really be any different? Will clients with Mental Health issues try to fit into this new era of digital reality? Or will it somehow severely impact their relationship with the real world?
- Financial Stability - Dealing with Mental Health is not cheap. A lot of people are under the impression that money can solve most of their problems. However, Most clients dealing with Mental Health issues will tell you they struggle to keep up with their bills, let alone invest their savings into Crypto. Most of them probably can't take the risk of investing in projects simply because they cannot deal with the risk of losing it or just cannot afford to. How can DeFi and the Mental Health sector work hand in hand to support clients in their investments and how can this be reflected in their quality of life?
- Unemployment - A big chunk of clients who suffer from Mental Health issues end up spending a lot of time being unemployed. How can the CryptoVerse be more inclusive and offer forms of income to these clients who would like to monetize their talents? Could this positively impact their quality of financial life?
Conclusion
These are just a few of the many, many topics that we can talk about in Mental Health and Cryptocurrency. The aim of this blog post was to simply raise awareness on how the two worlds CAN be related and how this link CAN have serious effects on Mental Health (Both Positive and Negative). In future blog posts, I will try to go deeper into individual topics and expand on how each sector can impact or link to Mental Health.
Are you interested in this topic? Comment down below!
Have a Story related to Mental Illness you'd like to share? DM me
Have an idea of links between Mental Health and Crypto Currency Or projects that support this? Let me know!
Hope you Enjoyed this blog post!
Stay safe, and never feel ashamed of seeking help.
Things are changing. Hang in there.
