TRIGGER WARNING: mental illnesses, suicide, depression, rape, drug addiction, substance abuse
*Contains spoiler alerts for 13 Reasons Why (S1-2) and Euphoria (S1)
Being a typical teenager, I am familiar with and have watched both “13 Reasons Why” and “Euphoria”. Often, with the glamorization and romanticization of mental illness in television shows, it can have harmful effects on those who watch it. Even though the Netflix and HBO series have spoken out about mental health, they have their own ways of delivering their message to their viewers. “13 Reasons Why” and “Euphoria” captivate the attention of its fans, but it may be all for the wrong reasons.
One misconception found in “13 Reasons Why” and “Euphoria” is that people who struggle with their mental health can’t get the proper help they need. The first season of 13 Reasons Why, a four-season series, revolves around Hannah Baker’s suicide. Prior to her death, Hannah leaves behind thirteen tapes, one for each person that contributed to the reason why she took her own life. As the seasons of the show unfold, it demonstrates the strong and emotional effect that losing a loved one to suicide can cause. Towards the end of the first season, Hannah approaches her school guidance counselor, Mr. Porter. She tells him that she was raped by a student that attends the same school as her. Hannah was vague about the details of the interaction, thus leading to Mr. Porter’s belief that the act was consensual. This misinterpretation and Mr. Porter’s ignorance of Hannah’s depression was the final straw in what caused her suicide. Despite the school guidance counselor not giving Hannah the attention she needed when she approached him for help, there are a wide variety of people that will stand by the side of those who need support. From school administration, friends, to family members, there will always be someone that cares about an individual’s mental health. The neglect that Mr. Porter gives to Hannah is uncommon because the mere purpose of guidance counselors is to listen and express concern for its students and their needs.
"Everything stops. Your heart, your lungs, and finally your brain. And everything you feel and wish and want to forget, it all just sinks. ... Over time, it's all I wanted, those two seconds of nothingness." These words are spoken in “Euphoria” by Rue Bennett, a recovering drug addict, who is fresh out of rehab after an overdose. After two months of receiving help, Rue’s exit makes it clear that she has “no intention of staying clean”. With this being said, it can be assumed that Rue did not receive the help she needed. The goal of Rue’s rehab was to get better and avoid substance abuse. When she finished rehab, it was obvious that she needed to stay away from drugs. The drugs are what caused her overdose and put her life at risk, which put her in rehab in the first place. However, Rue’s goodbye to rehab only brought her closer to her drug addiction. Ever since Rue was put in rehab to get the proper help, she still continued to use drugs after she left. Even though rehab did not go well for Rue, this possible misconception from“Euphoria” compared to the real world shows that there aren’t many individuals that have benefited from going to rehab. In fact, it is the opposite. According to Rehabs.com, out of 23.5 million people, 11.2% (2.1 million) benefited from rehab.
Written by Kelly Xie from Brooklyn, New Yor
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