Who hasn’t heard of Ted Talk?

These short, bite-sized videos have taken the world by storm. Packed with information through speeches by some of the world’s best professionals, Ted Talks offer a great source of inspiration, advice, and guidance. 

There are Ted Talks on practically everything. On science. Life. Technology. Living. And there are Ted Talks on mental health. 

We thought it would be quite cool to check out what some of the best minds in the business have to say on mental health. Awareness, as always, is vital on our well-being journey.

Find below the MyndStories list of the best 8 Ted Talks on mental health:

1. Andrew Solomon: Depression, the secret we share 

Time: 29 min

“The opposite of depression is not happiness, but vitality.” 

Depression – that D word. According to a World Health Organization report, India has the highest number of people with depression. The National Mental Health Survey of 2015-16 found that one in 20 Indians live with depression.

Those stats show that while mental health stigma may still be rife in India, we aren’t all that alone in dealing with depression. In this evocative talk, Solomon teaches us what depression is and isn’t and what living with depression and coming out on the other side of it can look like.

He addresses the many conundrums that depression brings. Questions like, does this persistent vacant and heavy feeling need philosophical answers or prescription drugs? Does medication treat your or make you less of what you are?

Solomon’s talk is poetic without romanticizing depression. He approaches depression and anxiety with sensitive honesty and highlights just how common depression is but how little it is spoken about.

Solomon’s book, ‘The Noonday Demon’, is just as poignant and important a read.

2. Cecilia McGough: I’m not a monster: Schizophrenia 

Time: 14 min

“We all see hear, and feel things when we are dreaming. I’m just someone who cannot turn off my nightmares, even when I’m awake.”

Cecilia’s raw account of living with schizophrenia gives us a glimpse of what it’s like to live with schizophrenia. Cecilia is a mental health activist and has lived all her life with schizophrenia. 

“When I first became open about having schizophrenia, it was a shock to even the people closest to me. It took me eight months after my suicide attempt to finally get the treatment that I needed,” she says.

In India, the latest findings suggest that 7% of the population lives with schizophrenia, an illness that is still spoken of in hushed tones. From her experience, McGough founded ‘Students with Schizophrenia,’ a non-profit organization that works with college students. 

3. Dr. Charles Raison: Rethinking how we understand and treat depression

Time: 16 min

“If factors outside the brain cause depression, might they also treat it?”

Depression is the leading cause of disability worldwide, with more than 260 million people affected by depression. 

Charles. L. Raison is a psychiatrist well-known for being one of the first scientists to study the potential of the Tibetan-Buddhism practice of compassion meditation. 

His talk begins with PTSD, or post-traumatic stress disorder, and covers many other mental health concerns, including depression, medication, placebo, and the environment around us that contributes to it.

A perfectly nuanced, science-backed talk that challenges us to look for unconventional approaches to enhancing well-being. Raison’s own study of 2,510 adults suggested that psychedelic use may provide mental health benefits. (read the study in Frontiers)

4. Vikram Patel: Mental health for all by involving all

Time: 12 min

“Healthcare has become so incredibly professionalized that it has become remote and removed from local communities. Task shifting doesn’t just make healthcare affordable but is also fundamentally empowering.”

In this talk, Vikram Patel drives home the need for the democratization of mental health and how to go about it. This talk is 10 years old but still just as relevant.

India has 0.75 psychiatrists per 100,000 people. This is alarming. The little that we do have is in urban areas, which means the 70% of the country that lives in rural India does not get requisite support. This talk shows how and why we must equip communities, volunteers, and individuals with tools to support and address mental health needs where robust systems aren’t in place yet. Revolutionizing our communities this way is the need of the hour and must be taught in the same way we need to teach people CPR for cardiac emergencies. This will also help elevate our understanding of mental health on a societal level. 

In this talk, Vikram Patel outlines his approach to making mental health care accessible to all by training community members to give mental health interventions. 

5. Steven Hayes: Mental brakes to avoid mental breaks

Time: 26 min

“Because it turns out the big joke is our secrets are the same secrets.”

Steven is a Nevada Foundation Professor at the Department of Psychology at the University of Nevada. The author of more than 38 books, Steven’s most popular book, ‘Get Out Of Your Mind And Into Your Life,’ was featured in Time magazine. 

How do we deal with negative thoughts?

This is a question we all struggle with, and Steven has a few answers. Steven’s talk is a balance of sensitive, funny, empathetic, and knowledgeable. The gentle probing he does instantly connects with anyone watching. He holds the space for what troubles and trauma each of us has or will experience and then teaches us how to move forward from it. 

6. Karen Dolva: All the lonely people 

Time: 14 min
 

“Technology is developed to make efficient people more efficient… It is built for those who are already moving too fast.”

In her heartfelt and research-backed talk, Karen shows the dire reality of loneliness. A big takeaway from this is the debate around technology and feeling connected. And in a time when most of our communication and connection requires technology, not being able to access or use tech means simply being ruled out entirely.

In Olivia Laing’s ‘The Lonely City,’ she asks, “What does it feel like to be lonely?” And then, the answer: It feels like being hungry when everyone around you is readying for a feast.

Karen bridges the gap in our understanding and treatment of loneliness and the very real physical consequences of it. She discusses loneliness among both older and younger generations. We’ve all, at some point, felt lonely, and this talk gives you something whether you’re lonely or not.

7. Sir Harry Burns: What causes wellness

Time: 16 min

“Poverty is part of a cycle. Poverty can be as much a consequence of the [alieniation] cycle as the cause of it. Action required has to happen across the whole of that life course.” 

What causes wellness?

Sir Harry Burns debates this question beautifully in this Ted Talk. Burns served as Scotland’s Chief Medical Officer before retiring and taking up a senior professorship in global public health at Strathclyde University. 

Sir Harry shares how social chaos, the nurture part of childhood and adult life, can have serious lifelong consequences. No one event can fully define how and what we do, but childhood experiences play a formative role, and its impact cannot be denied. 

8. Dr. Harish Shetty: Mental health soldiers

Time: 12 min

“It is neither an act of courage nor of cowardice. It’s the state of the mind at that point in time.”

This Ted Talk on mental health is a good place to begin understanding how to talk about mental health struggles with those who’re vulnerable. The talk might be especially helpful for late teens looking to sensitize themselves or their friends. A highlight teaching from the talk is not to use moralizing words, not to glorify or blame.

Awareness, support, and equality in mental health is a long road. But we have some exceptional people and resources available to educate ourselves and feel seen. Our support and understanding can go a long way in someone’s mental health journey. These videos help us show up better for ourselves and those around us.