We all know that laughter is the best medicine. And while it might take much more than simply giggles to combat complicated mental health issues like depression, getting your daily dose of sunshine through some memes certainly can’t hurt!
We’ve taken a trip to the Serotonin Memes Instagram page, which features hilarious and relatable pics all about mental health. These memes are no replacement for therapy and medication, but hopefully they’ll be able to give you a little boost of happiness hormones and remind you that you’re never alone in your mental health journey. Keep reading to also find conversations with the creator of Serotonin Memes, Anastasia, and Gabriela Ortiz, LPC from Modern Therapy!
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To gain more insight on this topic, we reached out to Gabriela Ortiz, LPC from Modern Therapy, who explained why maintaining a sense of humor can be beneficial when struggling with mental health issues.
"[This] can be helpful due to its power of releasing endorphins that help relieve pain, reduce stress, soothes tension by stimulating circulation and aid muscle relaxation. It improves one's sense of well-being," the expert shared.
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We were also curious if it's more beneficial to find a community who can relate to our own mental health struggles or to surround ourselves with others who have overcome these issues. "The answer to this question depends on who we are asking," Gabriela told Bored Panda. "Every person is unique and therefore requires different needs."
"Some individuals can benefit from engaging in a community that struggles with similar mental health issues because perhaps that individual lacks a sense of connection and wants to feel understood. This means that for this individual, engaging in a community that they can relate to can provide them with that need (resonance, connection, understanding)," she explained.
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"However, another individual may or may not have a community that they can relate to, but would like to learn from a person who has overcome mental health issues due to having lost the sense of hope throughout their own personal mental health journey," Gabriela continued.
"Therefore, for this individual, surrounding themselves with those who have prevailed in their journeys can meet their needs (motivation, hope, optimism). In the end, I believe that both can be very effective and beneficial, but sometimes one is more necessary for the individual depending on their circumstances," she added.
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The expert also provided some wise words for anyone who's looking to boost their serotonin levels. "First, I would praise them for taking the initiative to care for their health because our serotonin levels are so vital for our overall well-being," Gabriela shared. "It's job is to boost our mood as well as host of other functions. Some of these functions include influence on memory, mood, body temperature, sleep, sexual behavior, among others."
"Low levels of serotonin have been associated with depression and anxiety, and if not addressed, it can increase those symptoms of depression and anxiety," the expert noted. "Fortunately, there are options to boost our serotonin levels without medication and some of those options are taking walks outside for exposure to bright sunlight, exercising, a balanced diet, and meditation."
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To learn more about how Serotonin Memes came about in the first place, we also reached out to the page’s creator, Anastasia, who was kind enough to have a chat with Bored Panda.
“I started Serotonin Memes when I was fifteen years old,” she shared. “I had just gotten a concussion and had to quit the sport I loved and decided to start running a meme page to occupy my time. At the time, I was struggling immensely with my mental health and found comfort in memes about mental health because I saw it as evidence that I wasn't alone in feeling the way I did!”
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“Seeing the growth of this account has been an incredible, almost surreal experience,” Anastasia continued. “The growth was pretty slow for the first few years, but it really started to take off once Covid hit.”
“I think almost everyone was struggling with their mental health at that time, and a lot of people related to the content I was posting,” the creator noted. “Ever since then, the growth has continued. I never imagined this account taking off like it has. It's a really cool feeling to know that over 90,000 people enjoy my account and relate to my posts. I'm glad that my account can serve as a space where people can openly discuss (and joke about) their mental health struggles.”
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Anastasia also shared why she believes it’s important to maintain a sense of humor, even while struggling with mental health issues. “For me personally, humor has carried me through some of the hardest times in my life,” she told Bored Panda. “Being able to take a difficult situation and find some light in it is a skill that has allowed me to become more comfortable with talking about my mental health and opening up to people.”
“Maintaining a sense of humor, especially when it feels like there's nothing to smile about, can keep a person sane in the face of hardship,” she added. “I remember when I was in treatment for my mental health, a silly comment or a joke would remind me that I still had the capacity to feel good, even if it was just for a short moment.”
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As far as how she decides which memes to share, Anastasia noted that she tries to post memes that she deeply relates to or that reflect the mental health struggles she’s experiencing at that moment. “I typically find the memes I share myself by scrolling on social media and seeing what makes me laugh, but I sometimes post submissions from followers if I really relate to them or find them really funny!”
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We were also curious if Anastasia had any favorite pics that she's ever posted. “I recently posted a meme about how frustrating it is to find a song that you love and not being able to find songs that make you feel the same exact way,” she shared. “I love that post in particular because of how supportive and cool the comment section was! It was full of people talking about music and giving each other suggestions.”
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“It was really nice to see such a strong sense of community and support under a post of mine that had blown up because oftentimes, when posts get popular, there tends to be a lot of negativity in the comment section,” the creator added. “In terms of memes I've found especially relatable, I posted one that said something along the lines of ‘girls will play phoebe bridgers first thing in the morning like damn babe did you even try to be happy today?’ a while back. I think about that one every morning as I queue Phoebe Bridgers on Spotify.”
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Anastasia also says that running this page has definitely benefited her own mental health. “Having this little community to talk to has been really helpful,” she shared. “I really enjoy being able to post the highs and lows of my life knowing that somewhere, somebody might see it and find something, whether that be humor, relatability, etc., in my posts.”
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“Something else that I've found comforting is that this account is essentially documentation of my mental health journey from age 15 to age 20,” Anastasia continued. “Every post, caption, and story are a reflection of how I was feeling at that moment in time. All of my highs and lows were experienced while running this account.”
“It's been cool to look back at old posts and in my story archive and see just how much I’ve grown, and how much better I’m doing mentally now compared to the past,” the creator added. “It’s nice to have made this account as evidence that I’ve made it through all of the worst moments of my life, and that I can and will continue to do so.”
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Are you feeling healthier after scrolling through this list, pandas? Alright, we understand that silly little memes can’t cure your depression. So if you are struggling, please reach out to a therapist or trusted loved one who can provide you with resources to start your journey of getting well. And for now, remember to try to get some laughter in every day. Keep upvoting the pics you find most relatable, and then check out even more mental health memes from Bored Panda right here!
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