Opinion | Not just a July conversation

Every July, South Africa marks Mental Illness Awareness Month. Government departments, healthcare institutions, non-governmental organisations and advocacy groups host campaigns, distribute educational material and encourage conversations about mental health. These initiatives are valuable and deserve recognition.

They help reduce stigma and remind people that mental illness is not a personal failure but a health condition that can affect anyone. However, once July comes to an end, the conversation often fades while the crisis continues. Mental illness does not operate according to the calendar.

Depression, anxiety, substance use disorders and suicide remain daily realities for thousands of South Africans. Families continue to lose loved ones, workplaces continue to struggle with the impact of untreated mental illness, and healthcare workers continue to do the best they can with limited resources. If we are serious about addressing the country’s mental health burden, we must move beyond annual awareness campaigns and commit to year-round action.

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As a mental health practitioner, I regularly meet people who are battling emotional pain in silence. One group that particularly concerns me is men. Many have been raised to believe that expressing vulnerability is a sign of weakness.

They are expected to be providers, protectors and problem-solvers, often at the expense of their own wellbeing. Instead of asking for help, many internalise their struggles until they reach breaking point. This reality was brought home recently when I addressed members of the SA Police Service at a police station where an officer had recently died by suicide.

It was a deeply emotional engagement. Officers are expected to protect society while being exposed daily to trauma, violence, death and immense workplace stress. Yet many feel unable to seek psychological support because of stigma or fear that they will be judged by colleagues or viewed as incapable of performing their duties.

Sadly, this is not unique to the police. Healthcare workers, teachers, emergency personnel and many others carry enormous psychological burdens while trying to serve the public. The cost of ignoring their mental health is measured not only in absenteeism and reduced productivity but, in some cases, in lives lost. The recent death of a well-known SA footballer has once again reminded us that mental illness does not discriminate.

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