Mental health is a subject that people tend not to talk about in today’s society. Discussions about depression and anxiety are limited in almost all social media platforms. And in some cases, those who discuss these issues rarely get the recognition they deserve. There is one person in particular who strives to educate his community about mental health through Tik-Tok.
Simon Kim is a young Tik-Tok influencer who decided to use this social platform to encourage and support young adults struggling with mental health and wellbeing issues and create a brand known as of keep it healthy.
The Teen Magazine had the opportunity to speak with this inspiring young man about being an advocate and content creator for mental health and wellbeing.
@wholesomesimon the hardest roads lead to the most beautiful destinations
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“The main objective of ‘Keep it Wholesome’ is to save lives. To send the message that it will get better. And I think thanks to Tik-Tok, we were able to build this incredible community.
Simon is not motivated by the number of views or likes he receives on his videos. He is driven by the idea of changing someone’s life through a single message.
Background
Prior to the creation of his mental health channel, Simon rose to fame through his comedy sketches and lip-syncing videos. As his fame grew, he started creating more in-depth videos on important topics such as sadness, depression, and anxiety. Following the creation of his videos, Simon felt compelled to use his messages to save lives.
Mental Health
Since starting his account, Simon Kim has gained a deeper understanding of the concept of mental health, especially among young people. “Everyone deals with different things,” Kim said. “So it’s important to realize that rather than just saying ‘this child isn’t really depressed’ or ‘this child isn’t really going to do anything’ when you can’t tell. And a lot of young children live today much more now than a long time ago. I’ve come to realize this. There are actually a lot of young children struggling with depression and anxiety, and it’s a real problem.
“It is important to realize that everything is temporary. Temporary waves of sadness occur, temporary waves of happiness occur. But it’s important to realize that you’re going to live a lot longer, you’re going to live to be a hundred years old. So a bad week, a bad day, a bad year, it’s not much compared to that. If you try to keep that positive mindset, in a way, you can keep getting better. Thanks to this, you can live a better life.
@wholesomesimon Repost bc I messed up sorry! ❤️❤️ ##keepitwholesome i love you so much
♬ original sound – sainsimon
When asked how he maintained his positive mindset during this difficult time in history, Simon Kim mentioned that through various activities such as running daily and creating more videos, he was able to develop a feeling of control. Simon went on to describe how any individual can be able to maintain a positive mindset.
“We cannot control that this virus has happened and we are in quarantine. We have no control over this. You try to limit this effect on you because it’s something you can’t control. Instead, you focus on what you can control. I think you need to figure out what you can control and where you spend your time. And ultimately, that leads to finding a passion. And once you find a passion, that’s what will keep you satisfied and occupied. Because the biggest problem is that being bored and static can lead to a lot of doubts.
For many people, the idea of a positive mindset can be difficult to achieve. It is essential for every individual to find a sense of control in their life.
@wholesomesimon The cut ending: “please consider living another day” ❤️ I love you ##keepitwholesome ##wholesome
♬ original sound – sainsimon
“I think you can take back a lot of control over the things that happen to you on a day-to-day basis that you feel like are ruining your day, your week, or your year.”
For decades, there has been a lot of stigma surrounding the idea of mental health. Asked about the many misconceptions surrounding mental health, Kim offered her thoughts on the matter. “Some people think there’s only one way to deal with mental illness. I think it needs to be very personalized. Of course, saying “I’ll be fine” and general things like that will help. But at the end of the day, there are a lot of personal things that come into play.”
@wholesomesimon FULL VID ON YOUTUBE in my bio ❤️ so grateful for you all. You are the reason I wake up 🙂
♬ original sound – sainsimon
“People struggling with depression and anxiety go into stages of denial where they feel comfortable with their depression and anxiety. And some friends believe that no matter what they do, they can’t help. Well, how you can help is just to be there for the person. That means a lot. And I want to encourage more people to do that and find that.
And after?
For now, Simon’s main focus is creating his Tik-Tok videos. On this platform, he strives to reach the most people and possibly save the most lives.
Simon Kim, thank you so much for your inspiring content and all you have done for the social community.
Simon has expanded his content beyond his Tik-Tok (@wholesomesimon). You can find him on Instagram (@5imonkim) with keep it healthy (@keepingitwholesome) and on YouTube (@wholesomesimon)
