Bill Maher argued that too many Americans have an unhealthy focus on mental health issues as the cause of normal ups and downs in life.
While acknowledging depression can be real, he said earlier generations didn’t expect to feel good all the time.
“New rule: Being obsessed with your mental health is bad for your mental health,” Maher said.
Maher criticized self-diagnosis trends on TikTok and said most antidepressant users haven’t been clinically diagnosed. He contended many white women in particular act depressed when they shouldn’t be that unhappy, given good economic conditions.
Maher’s view is that not every bad feeling signifies a disease and Americans overly medicalize problems like sadness, worry, boredom and shyness.
“I’ve been thinking a lot lately about a puzzle many are struggling with, why are Biden’s approval ratings so low when things are generally pretty good? Of course, there are problems, America’s a big place, but wages are rising, unemployment is negligible, the stock market is soaring, we somehow brushed off both a Trump presidency and a pandemic. Yes, inflation persists for a lot of things, but an actual good, nice-sized TV now costs $60,” Maher said.
“Who gets credit for that? We’ve got next-day shipping, stuffed-crust pizza, legal weed, GPS, and porn on the phone, cheer the [expletive] up, stop acting like life in America in 2024 is unbearable. Biden’s ratings are in the toilet, not because he’s doing such a bad job, but because a lot of Americans like to live with their head in the toilet,” Maher said.
“And while depression is, of course, a very real thing, it’s also true that earlier generations never suffered from the expectation that you’re supposed to feel good all the time. … And the kids? The newest TikTok challenge is self-diagnosis of mental problems, because what’s more of a hotbed of mental health than TikTok? … Now, without a doubt, antidepressants can be life-saving for those who need them, but here’s the thing, about three-quarters of Americans who are on them haven’t been diagnosed with depression at all, they just want a magic pill. … [T]he people who really shouldn’t be that bummed out, but are acting like it anyway, are exactly who you think, white women,” he said.
He said sometimes people just have a bad day and labeling oneself with a disorder becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy when normal human struggles are seen as a permanent mental health condition.
Maher’s position is many perceived issues could be solved by better sleep, sunlight, diet or exercise instead of always assuming a clinical problem.
Maher added, “[E]very bad feeling isn’t a disease, and Americans really need to stop pathologizing everything. No one’s just sad anymore, they’re clinically depressed. They don’t really worry, they have chronic anxiety. Do you like things neat and organized? That’s OCD. You’re bummed when it’s cold out? Seasonal depression. Hate being alone? Separation anxiety. Bored? That’s ADHD. Shy? Social Anxiety Disorder. Why, because you don’t want to go to the office party? Nobody does. … Are you moody? No, you’re bipolar. And some people are bipolar and some people are on the spectrum. But sometimes, on the spectrum is just a hall pass for being a jerk. … Yes, you are on the spectrum, but so is everyone else alive. That’s why they call it a spectrum. And it’s not noble to glom on to the soft end of it. PTSD is for people who fought in Iraq, not for people who want to bring their dog on a plane.”
“There are people in America with real problems who deserve to feel sad. But sometimes a bad day is just a bad day. When you constantly reinforce this message that no one’s just a normal human with normal struggles, but we’re all permanently [expletive] in the head, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. Maybe the solution is much simpler, and you just went a week without sleep or sunlight, maybe you have problems that could be solved with vegetables or exercise,” he said.
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