Growing up, prioritizing my mental health was not something I explored with anyone. Our family rarely addressed our emotions. Sh*t would happen and we would all go to our respective corners of the house and either distract ourselves with other things or ruminate over it.

In school and in the workplace, I didn’t feel safe enough to talk about my feelings either. I got that sense that no one did, especially the other men around me, so I kept it all to myself. I played it off when I was hurt, or embarrassed, or angry.

Not only did I not have a male role model that was willing to be vulnerable and sit in humility, but I also haven’t seen many examples of men of color doing so, at least in mainstream media. I know there are many more voicing themselves now and I am so glad that they are, but for the most part, it’s still a missing avenue for a lot of us.

Representation is so important for young people. We want to follow someone we can identify with and relate to. To be able to model ourselves after someone we'd like to become. Without it, there's potential to feel lonely, like we don't belong anywhere, and that we have to do everything on our own.

But that's never the case. All throughout history, humans have survived by working together as a team. No one does it alone. And that's why we need to see more examples of people from diverse backgrounds represented in every industry, let alone the wellness industry.

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Timestamps:

[8:14] There are all these young people looking for help, where are all the adults?

[15:05] How can we address the lack of diversity in wellness spaces

[18:29] Immigrant families didn't have the privilege and disposable income to prioritize mental wellness because there wasn’t a tangible benefit

[28:32] Culture plays both a positive and negative role in how we perceive our individual values

[33:57] Media has the power and responsibility with branding and representation to make it safe to be vulnerable

[39:48] Technology can be used as a force for positivity

[41:08] Respect your cultural and familial values, but know that they are also subjective, so you can choose what to believe in

[51:01] End segment: when were you last angry, sad, and excited in your life?

[58:16] What is Mike up to and where can you find him?

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Learn more about Mike and his story at https://www.mikesagun.com/about.

Follow him on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/mike.sagun or at https://www.instagram.com/theunshakableman.

Find more about Mike’s Unshakable Man program at https://www.mikesagun.com/unshakableprogram or at http://unshakableman.me.

Create or join a free Men’s group in your city at https://evryman.com/groups.

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Subscribe to get your free list of 11 Emotional Resiliency exercises and to get podcast and blog updates at http://victorung.com/subscribe.

Follow me on Instagram: http://instagram.com/_victorung.

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(1 year later) An Update On My Quarter-life Crisis

Human UpBy Victor UngApr 30, 2019