Isabelle Daza wants to remove stigma surrounding depression, anxiety: ‘It’s okay to not be okay’

Image: Instagram/@isabelledaza

Isabelle Daza couldn’t help but be emotional in her recent talk about mental health, particularly about the stigma surrounding mental illness and how social media, despite its breakthroughs and innovation, can lead one to depression and anxiety.

Daza shared her talk on Instagram last July 13, despite being shy sharing it as she didn’t “look her best.”

“So I’m kinda shy or scared to post this cause I don’t look my best but thats not the point. I’m sharing this very personal, emotional talk because I want to stand up against the stigma that mental illness is something we should be ashamed about.”

In her moving talk, Daza shared that she wants to remove the stigma that mental illness is something to be ashamed of.

“My name is Isabelle Daza, I’m a social media influencer. I’m here today because I want to remove the stigma that mental illness, anxiety, depression is something that we need to be ashamed about,” Daza said at the start of her talk.

“It’s amongst us, but God forbid, anybody find out that we’re not living this perfect life… With social media, I’m not gonna say it’s the most awful thing on earth because social media has helped us with a lot.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BlMgJxungxR/?hl=en&taken-by=isabelledaza

But despite the good things social media has opened up to its users, Daza shared that it can also be a a source of negativity.

“It generates this jealousy and it generates this ‘I’m not good enough,’ ’I’m not as pretty,’ ‘I’m not as thin,’” Daza continued, seemingly crying.

“’I’m not traveling as much.’ I felt like I need to be relevant, I need to be talked about, I need to post something today.”

In the video, Daza’s audience can be seen listening intently as she spoke articulately. “I can’t imagine being a teenage girl looking up at influencers and wanting that life and then going home and feeling like ‘I don’t have it.’ Maybe this can lead to mental illness and depression and anxiety.”

Daza also encouraged her audience to reach out to the people they love. “Whole point of being here today was to inspire someone, talk to the person you love, I don’t mean like send them a message on Instagram and troll somebody,” she said.

“Connect with them, and validate them and say ‘I hear you’ and it’s okay to not be okay sometimes, but we’re gonna get through this. People need to be heard and maybe we can save a life.”  /ra

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