We can stuff every orifice with the freshest of kale... but that depression and anxiety will still be there sis.

-JeCorey Holder
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by JeCorey Holder

Y’all have probably seen the faux-inspirational memes about replacing anxiety medication with a walk in the woods or some scenic adventure into the mountains. Or the high-key diet-shaming memes about how one can cure their depression with organic vegan meal-prepping (Left-overs. They’re called left-overs, damn it. But thats a different comic entirely).

Of course, only neurotypical people will think this shit up and post it online like its deep and profound. Like dealing with ragweed and mosquitos or gargling a bowl of bland-ass honeydew every day has been the undiscovered mental panacea that’s been right under our noses all along. Like it’s really that simple.

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Don’t get me wrong, staying hydrated and getting your vitamins always helps physically in the long run. Especially if you’re staying limber. However, insisting that this is all it takes to achieve perfect mental health is not only reductive but also puts your neurotypical privilege on full display.

A “healthy” lifestyle alone does not treat the symptoms of mental illness and it is a blatant insult to the people going through it to suggest so. Period.

We can stuff every orifice with the freshest of kale, juice cleanse until our body produces chlorophyll, bathe in the greenest snake-oil-infused herbal teas while we sit in Full Lotus pose, but that depression and anxiety will still be there sis.

RELATED: Comic: No, you did not turn out “just fine”

Gamer, geek, and social activist. JeCorey Holder has been weaving tapestries of shade and fury since the early 2000’s. Pro-LGBTQ, pro-black, and pro intersectional feminism, he is full of feelings and opinions that try to call out and tear down the oppressive status quo.