'Enter And Cry': Spanish 'Crying Room' Is Trying To End Mental Health Taboo
La Lloreria or the Crying Room is based in central Madrid and it looks to remove the stigma in society attached to mental health crying and seeking help. One out of 10 adolescents are diagnosed with a mental health condition in Spain.
¡°Enter and cry," says a sign to visitors.
¡°I too have anxiety," another one glows in the pink colour.
The corner has phones with names of the people one can call when one is feeling down, a psychologist included.
Reuters
What is being talked about?
La Lloreria, or the Crying Room. Anyone can come to the place based in central Madrid and it looks to remove the stigma in society attached to mental health, crying and seeking help, as per Reuters.
¡°It is a really excellent idea to visualise the mental health issue. It is stigmatised to cry in Spain as in many other countries," said Jon Nelssom, a Swedish student living in Madrid.
One week back Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez declared a 100-million-euro ($116 million) mental healthcare drive to including services such as a 24-hour suicide helpline.
Reuters
¡°It is not a taboo, it is a public health problem that we must talk about, make visible and act accordingly," he said.
In 2019, 3671 people took their lives in Spain. One out of 10 adolescents are diagnosed with a mental health condition.
Meanwhile, 5.8% of the overall population suffers from anxiety, the government data said.
