Good Vibes Only Scholarship in Memory of C. Spoon

Sergio Jordan Jr. Good Vibes Only Scholarship 03/09/2025 I believe Mental Illness and the stigma around it is a huge social issue that does not get the attention as well as action it deserves sometimes. My dream is to become a psychiatrist. I plan to spread awareness and tips to destigmatize this social issue. I also plan to do my part to help manage and eliminate as much of this issue as possible. I am in the process of completing my B.S in psychology before Med school and I plan to be as attentive to detail and creative as possible to bring never seen before innovation to this issue. I believe in this issue the small details in the mentally ill as well as those who seem just fine will be key to new breakthroughs. Understanding ourselves deeper than before even when we seem perfectly normally will uproot some effective solutions. BIPOC Individuals and communities mask their mental health so well it often goes unrecognized or is translated as something else, maybe a threat or maybe even happiness. The generational trauma we have endured for so many years has not only fused with our culture but has hindered our growth. Even though we do so well that just shows how much better we can be. I too am an African American man, and I suffer from depression and anxiety. For many years you couldn’t tell me anything was wrong with me, but a plethora of dormant feelings and emotions came to the surface. Since then, I began noticing signs and characteristics in a plethora of people from my background with unaddressed issues. People with normal lives being weighed down by issues that they deserve to have resolved. I believe mental health is a fearful term. An issue that people fear, or hate being associated with. People may think that others will call them crazy or avoid them all together. They might feel beneath others. They might even show too much sympathy or a lack of empathy towards others with mental health issues. I think it’s a problem that mental health is associated with this bad stigma, and it prevents us from growing as a community. I want to learn more about myself and the way I think as well as learn about others and the way they think to better understand us as a whole. We could better ourselves in so many ways if we take the time to analyze ourselves or allow ourselves to be analyzed for our benefit. I feel all the communities around the world have a plethora to learn and we should become more open to learning it beyond major issues all the way down to small issues that we see as nothing or issues that don’t seem to hold us back or hurt us or others in any way. I feel ignoring small issues like this hinders growth. I feel there is way more room to grow in the mental health department and we all need an open mind to help it grow. I would agree that we have already come so far as far as our mental health goes, but we could go so much further in half the time if we open our minds and let down our guards. To summarize I feel that there are not only major but small issues especially that could hinder our growth as a people, and we shouldn’t be afraid of diving deeper as a community and being more open-minded and less defensive.