Mental Health Minute No. 2: Embrace Your Weird

Breaking through that which harms our mental health

This is the second edition of a short weekly newsletter devoted to short ideas that can boost community and individual mental wellness and give my readers a pick-me-up at the end of the week. Do you have a tip to submit for a future Mental Health Minute? Email me!

Have you ever been called “weird” for something that you did or loved? How did that make you feel? Probably not great. Have you ever called someone else weird and meant it negatively?

“Weird” has a certain meaning in our society. It tends to describe someone or something unusual and outside the norm, but often not in a positive way. Don’t step too far out of the line of conformity or people will call you weird. They’ll make you feel bad about being weird. You’ll start to question yourself, your worth, and your life. What’s wrong with me? Why am I weird? Do I even matter? Why does everyone look down on me and treat me poorly?

I’m here to ask: what’s wrong with being weird? We are all unique, special individuals who differ from the norm in some capacity, small or large. We might have a different hobby. We might have a different voice. We might like very unique foods or music or art that people around us do not understand. And guess what? THAT’S AWESOME.

A community comprised of people who all look, think, and act the same would be terribly boring and creepy. I think they’ve made horror movies based on that premise. Our “weird” makes us interesting and underscores the unique nature of every human.

So on this Friday, I say embrace your weird! Own it. Wear it. Promote it. If someone calls you weird, tell them thank you and encourage them to be weird too. Don’t let conformity confine you or harm your mental health, friends. We are unique humans. We are meant to be weird.

James Decker is the Mayor of Stamford, Texas and the creator of the West of 98 website and the “Rural Church and State” and “West of 98” podcasts. Contact James and subscribe to these essays at westof98.substack.com and subscribe to him wherever podcasts are found. Check out the West of 98 Bookstore with book lists for essential reads here.