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Hi, I'm Sreela Roy Green, a licensed therapist on BetterHelp, and I'm here with a special bonus episode of Mind if We Talk? Today, I'm stepping in to talk about something I see in my work all the time, and maybe you felt it too. You know, therapy helps you believe in mental health care, but when it's your turn to ask for help, that hesitation creeps in. This isn't just a personal feeling, it's a global one. In their first ever State of Stigma report, BetterHelp surveyed over 16,000 people across 23 countries about mental health. The findings? They're powerful, a little heartbreaking, but also hopeful. We'll dig into some major trends, like how three out of four people say it's wise to seek help for your mental well being, yet only 27% in the US are in therapy. That stat is even lower at 16% in the UK. While stigma can look different around the world, the hesitation to seek help is something many people share, regardless of culture or country. A little later in this episode, we'll be joined by one of our better health therapists, based in the uk, to explore how these patterns are playing out locally and what might help more people feel safe and supported in reaching out. So today, let's unpack what's really preventing people asking for the help they deserve. Foreign let's start with the tension I find both fascinating and deeply familiar. We love to support mental health from the sidelines, right? We tell friends to go to therapy, repost, check on your people quotes, maybe even have a mug that says self care isn't selfish. But when we're the ones struggling, suddenly it's I'm fine, just mildly spiraling. Thanks for asking. Here's what the data Nearly three out of every four respondents surveyed worldwide agree that it's wise for people to seek support to maintain well being. But nearly 6 in 10 say that societal attitudes discourage people from seeking mental health help. And only 27% of people in the United States are actually in therapy. That's the heart of stigma. When belief doesn't lead to action because something in the culture still says don't go there. I see it in sessions all the time. Clients will say things like I should be able to handle this. Other people have it worse. Or they hold back because they've spent years being told, directly or indirectly, that their pain should stay quiet. Now let's talk about Gen Z for a moment. They're leading the conversation around mental health more than any other generation, sharing, posting and speaking up. But all the same. They're also carrying some of the heaviest emotional contradictions about it. Here's what the report found. 37% of Gen Z believe that those who seek counseling are mentally weak, compared to 27% of millennials, Gen Xers and baby boomers combined. And even among those in therapy, 37% say their therapist doesn't understand them, 33% don't trust their therapist, and 34% admit to not being fully forthcoming in sessions. They're showing up, but they're not sure therapy is showing up for them. And I get it. I've worked with younger clients who are incredibly self aware, articulate and emotionally intelligent and still deeply afraid that they won't truly be seen. So my question is, what is Gen Z asking for that traditional therapy hasn't delivered yet? And how can we meet them in a way that feels safe, validating and real? I was having this casual conversation the other day. Somebody said, isn't your job to tell people what to do? My response? No. My job is to help the other person understand themselves and figure out what they want, not the other way around. I listen and give them grace. That's not something many of us have in this life. I think that is very much the root of the issue. I think that traditional therapists, especially the ones who are quote seasoned, need to remember that what they already know or understand may not be applicable to Gen Z. The tools can still be used, but it's important to change the language, get on the same level as much as you can. While the human experience remains the same, the challenges that Gen Z are experiencing feel different for them. So I think it's important to remember that therapy is for the client, not for the therapist. I think the other piece to this is, is understanding that Gen Z is more self aware and informed. So treating therapy as a safe, open, and here's the key word, authentic experience is the most important thing we can do, keeping it real rather than rehearsed or scripted. And lastly, remembering that therapy doesn't, quote, fix everything, but it's a way to learn how to fix things for yourself. I think that's a key misconception that needs to be addressed. Foreign let's take a minute to talk about something that's reshaping how we view mental health around the world. Social media. According to the State of Stigma report, one in five people globally spend over four hours a day on social media. And for many, these platforms have become informal spaces to talk about mental health. They offer visibility, community and connection, especially for younger generations. But here's the paradox. The more time people spend online, the more conflicted they often feel about getting real support. People who heavily use social media are almost twice as likely to feel judged for seeking therapy, 45% more likely to believe therapy rarely solves personal problems, and are more likely to share about mental health online than to speak to a therapist about it, compared to those spending less time on social media. In fact, one in four people say they feel more comfortable discussing their mental health on social media than in therapy. And I get it. Posting a story, sharing a meme, or liking a video can feel like a release. Like you're saying, I feel that too. But sometimes that relief is a band aid, not a breakthrough. It covers the pain, but it doesn't always help us understand or heal it. Another thing we have to be careful with diagnosis by algorithm, it's easy to scroll through content and suddenly start wondering, wait, do I have that? And while that curiosity can be a powerful first step, it's not a substitute for real evaluation, care or support. Here's what I remind my clients Being seen isn't the same as being supported, and venting online isn't the same as working through it. Social media might start the conversation, but therapy helps you explore the full story, because healing doesn't happen in comments or captions. It happens in the quiet, intentional work of being heard. Now let's talk about the environment we're in, because that plays a big role in how safe it feels for us to get help. In the US Nearly half of people say they have a private space for therapy, but that drops to 40% for people living with roommates and 36% for those living with older generations. If you're living in a small shared space and don't feel like you can even speak freely, you're probably not going to open up about your deepest struggles. That's not avoidance. That's lack of access. And access isn't just about having a phone or WI fi. It's about having the right conditions to make therapy feel doable. That's where socioeconomic barriers come in. Because, let's be real. Privacy is a privilege, time is a privilege, and emotional bandwidth is a privilege. Especially when you're in survival mode. If you're a single parent juggling two jobs, childcare, and everything else carving out 45 minutes to talk about your feelings, it can feel impossible. Among parents of young kids, 63% believe in therapy even when nothing's wrong. But 34% still think people who go to therapy are different in a negative way, and 47% question whether it even works. So even when people believe in the idea of therapy, there's a wall between that belief and the follow through. And that wall is built from things like housing, money, exhaustion and fear. Stigma doesn't live in isolation. It's braided into people's realities. If we want to break it down, we can't just say, get help. Do they have the space to the time, to resources, to emotional safety, to. We've looked at stigma from a few different angles. Generational, cultural, emotional, even logistical. So where does that leave us? If you ever hesitated to reach out or worried what someone might think if they knew you were struggling, I want you to know you're not alone. And that hesitation, it's not weakness, it's not failure. It's often the result of living in a society that hasn't made support feel safe or accessible or fully human. But here's the thing. Every time we talk about this stuff, we shift the culture just a little. When someone hears you say, yeah, I've been to therapy, or I actually wasn't okay for a while, you give them permission to be human too. And that's what this is really about. So maybe today just ask yourself, do I feel supported? And if not, what kind of support would actually help? If you're interested in reading the full State of Stigma report, you can find it@betterhelp.com earlier, we mentioned that only 16% of people in the UK are currently in therapy, even though the level of emotional need is just as high as it is in the U.S. in fact, the data shows that Brits report similar rates of anxiety and depression, but are nearly twice as likely as Americans to avoid therapy due to stigma. To help us understand this better, I'm joined by Victoria Wren, a qualified therapist on BetterHelp based in the UK. Thanks so much for being here.