Influencer Karla Álvarez denounced mockery and ignorance about depression and highlights the lack of empathy towards mental health patients. Santo Domingo. – Content creator Karla Álvarez, known on social media as “La Mana,” publicly responded to comments received from acquaintances, who claim that several people have questioned the veracity of her mental health diagnosis and have even wondered if she “is going crazy, is sad or depressed.” In a testimony shared through her social media accounts, “La Mana” explained how she continues to face ridicule and prejudice after having made public her process with depression and anxiety, conditions that, as she has previously shared, require psychiatric treatment and emotional support.
You may be interested in: Karla Álvarez returns to Instagram after controversy over comments about the Jet Set tragedy
The young woman pointed out that these reactions not only reflect a deep misinformation surrounding mental health issues, but also highlight the lack of sensitivity and support faced by those who suffer from these types of disorders in Dominican society.“Two good friends in recent days have told me that people have approached them to ask if I’m really going crazy. If it’s true that I’m sad/depressed and another said that I was doing that to get attention,” explained Álvarez.
Álvarez in recent months has been the subject of public scrutiny since his involvement in the controversy related to the Jet Set nightclub tragedy, where he was allegedly accused of refusing to release information about a missing person. Since then, she has reported that she lost job opportunities, followers, her social media accounts, and emotional stability, circumstances that led her to return to her native Santiago de los Caballeros and begin medical treatment. Despite the scrutiny she has been subjected to, she reiterated that her motivation for speaking about her mental health does not respond to a need for attention, but rather to the desire to make visible the situation faced by many people who are going through similar conditions, but without support networks, close people and accurate information.“This just shows me the ignorance that exists in our country about mental health. Thinking about the relatives with depression of such people is sad, because they don’t understand and don’t have the patience and empathy required by a person with mental problems,” she added.
The influencer insisted that many people are afraid to accept their condition, reject pharmacological treatments, or avoid seeking professional help for fear of being stigmatized or ridiculed, which makes the process they are facing more difficult.“I don’t need the fake empathy that many sell here on social media. I share this for those who suffer from mental illnesses and don’t know it. Those who have no one to listen to them, help them, and understand them,” she added.
Álvarez also appealed to the responsibility of family members and close relatives of people with mental disorders, urging them to show commitment and real support beyond the economic. “If you have a family member who is ‘depressed’, who ‘hates life’, who is ‘lacking attention’, it is your duty to at least try to help them and make them go to therapy or take their medication. Be at their service, look for them, be there for them,” he said. The content creator concluded her message by reminding that those going through mental illnesses do not always have the strength to ask for help, which is why the support of those around them becomes a key piece in the recovery process: “A mentally ill person does not have the strength. They need understanding, they need patience, and they need to be listened to. And that’s when you really show the love you have for them. Saying ‘I love you’ is easy, the hard part is showing it.”“My commitment is to prevent others from getting worse, it’s for people to know what depression really is, which is talked about so much and nobody knows anything about,” he pointed out.
His recent statement adds to other statements he has made previously after facing the society’s rejection very closely.
