Speaker of the House Paul Ryan recently posted this message on his Twitter account:
"I used to give up food, like beer or ice cream, for #Lent. But this year, I decided to give up something different."
He then elaborated on the matter in a video, saying, "I used to give up food things, I used to give up, you know, beer, or ice cream or pop. Typically what I do is don't pick those things back up. Ice cream and beer I still have a little bit, but I've given up so many things over the years, food-wise, that I decided to witch my Lenten vows to character deficiencies, or problems I've had." He then specified by saying he was giving up anxiety and impatience this year.
Upon hearing this, Lindsay Holmes of the Huffington Post criticized Speaker Ryan:
"The more people conflate mental health terms with colloquialisms, the more alienated individuals with mental illness will feel. Do you know how many of those 40 million Americans wish they could just 'give up anxiety' for 40 days? Or even one day? All of them.
Stigma is real. Only 25 percent of people with a mental health issue feel like others are compassionate about their condition. And, really, it's no surprise given that public figures treat the disorders as a punchline in the public spotlight."
As a progressive who had to deal with anxiety problems, as well as epilepsy, I have to say I come down somewhere in the middle of this debate. For as little as I defend Paul Ryan's stances, I have to partially defend him here. It appears fairly obvious to me that the intent of his message was a positive one. He was admitting that he's not perfect and will strive to improve upon a pair of imperfections, for which I have to commend him. On the flip side of the argument, however, while Ryan may have meant well with his comments, he came across as quite ignorant on the matter. Anxiety can be an incredibly debilitating condition and shouldn't be taken lightly. I only recently discovered my anxiety issues, and I have to be honest, in all my 35 years here on earth, the most frightening moment for me was going through my first panic attack. Trust me, I and everyone else who has endured such an extraordinarily frightening experience wish we could just up and say, "You know what I'm giving up for Lent? Panic attacks." Yeah, it sounds ridiculous when phrased as such, doesn't it? That would have been like me converting to Catholicism as a child and telling my mom, "You know what I'm giving up for Lent, mom? Seizures!" I wish I could have done that, but reality had other ideas. While I was at it, I should have given up my brain tumor as well...
Paul Ryan may have meant well with his post, but he did come across as ignorant and unintentionally insensitive in the process. Anxiety isn't something a person can just "give up." For one's New Year's resolution, aspire to reduce anxiety in the coming year by attending yoga classes or something of the sort; attempt to improve on one's impatience via another avenue, but don't just say, "It's easy to give up things I like or pretend to like for Lent, like beer or ice cream. You know what else I like and would be easy to give up for 40 days? Anxiety." Yup, it's that easy, folks! One moment while I temporarily rid myself of this fixable character flaw via the magic touch of Zoloft...
http://www.starpulse.com/news/index.php/2016/03/27/paul-ryan-called-insensitive-for-givin
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/paul-ryan-anxiety_us_56f3f1a5e4b02c402f668bc5
"I used to give up food, like beer or ice cream, for #Lent. But this year, I decided to give up something different."
He then elaborated on the matter in a video, saying, "I used to give up food things, I used to give up, you know, beer, or ice cream or pop. Typically what I do is don't pick those things back up. Ice cream and beer I still have a little bit, but I've given up so many things over the years, food-wise, that I decided to witch my Lenten vows to character deficiencies, or problems I've had." He then specified by saying he was giving up anxiety and impatience this year.
Upon hearing this, Lindsay Holmes of the Huffington Post criticized Speaker Ryan:
"The more people conflate mental health terms with colloquialisms, the more alienated individuals with mental illness will feel. Do you know how many of those 40 million Americans wish they could just 'give up anxiety' for 40 days? Or even one day? All of them.
Stigma is real. Only 25 percent of people with a mental health issue feel like others are compassionate about their condition. And, really, it's no surprise given that public figures treat the disorders as a punchline in the public spotlight."
As a progressive who had to deal with anxiety problems, as well as epilepsy, I have to say I come down somewhere in the middle of this debate. For as little as I defend Paul Ryan's stances, I have to partially defend him here. It appears fairly obvious to me that the intent of his message was a positive one. He was admitting that he's not perfect and will strive to improve upon a pair of imperfections, for which I have to commend him. On the flip side of the argument, however, while Ryan may have meant well with his comments, he came across as quite ignorant on the matter. Anxiety can be an incredibly debilitating condition and shouldn't be taken lightly. I only recently discovered my anxiety issues, and I have to be honest, in all my 35 years here on earth, the most frightening moment for me was going through my first panic attack. Trust me, I and everyone else who has endured such an extraordinarily frightening experience wish we could just up and say, "You know what I'm giving up for Lent? Panic attacks." Yeah, it sounds ridiculous when phrased as such, doesn't it? That would have been like me converting to Catholicism as a child and telling my mom, "You know what I'm giving up for Lent, mom? Seizures!" I wish I could have done that, but reality had other ideas. While I was at it, I should have given up my brain tumor as well...
Paul Ryan may have meant well with his post, but he did come across as ignorant and unintentionally insensitive in the process. Anxiety isn't something a person can just "give up." For one's New Year's resolution, aspire to reduce anxiety in the coming year by attending yoga classes or something of the sort; attempt to improve on one's impatience via another avenue, but don't just say, "It's easy to give up things I like or pretend to like for Lent, like beer or ice cream. You know what else I like and would be easy to give up for 40 days? Anxiety." Yup, it's that easy, folks! One moment while I temporarily rid myself of this fixable character flaw via the magic touch of Zoloft...
http://www.starpulse.com/news/index.php/2016/03/27/paul-ryan-called-insensitive-for-givin
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/paul-ryan-anxiety_us_56f3f1a5e4b02c402f668bc5
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