Dear Editors,

As I read Josh Kaufman’s column entitled Existential Generalizations: Taking Meds is Okay: We Should Settle More Often from October 9th, 2016, I found myself feeling grateful and proud toward Josh for candidly discussing his mental health challenges. It is sincerely something we all struggle with ourselves, or know a loved one or family member who experiences it. As humans we all go through periods of darkness, and the best way through the darkness is to reach out and ask for help, whether in the form of someone to talk to (like our amazing counselors) or through medicinal treatment (or both).

Beyond the occasional dark patch in life, though, I would like to challenge Josh’s stance that taking an anti-depressant or other medicinal treatment for mental health issues is optional or indicative of “settling.” While I think Josh was spot-on in his assessment of “our Calvinist roots” dictating that as a society we view fighting through something as more noble than accepting help, beyond that, I think the stigma of asking for help for issues around mental health is still very real and pervasive in our society.

For many people, though, medicinal treatment is imperative and definitely not optional. This spring, I had to hospitalize an immediate family member because she wasn’t taking the medication she was prescribed. It was extraordinarily difficult for us and if she had maintained her medicinal treatment, we would have avoided a lot of heartache.

So, from the heart, I encourage all of us to keep an open mind and open heart when it comes to matters of mental health. Needing help doesn’t make you weak–in fact, asking for it shows just how strong one can be.

Annette Lesak

FWP Middle & Upper School Librarian