Is Cigna’s mental health message enough?

*This post may be a little fiery than usual*

Recently Cigna launched a campaign which includes some well known celebrities talking about the importance of taking care of one’s mental health. In theory it is a great message, but here is where I have a problem with it—they direct you to your doctor and not a therapist.

Now, don’t get me wrong, doctors are fantastic resources! But the truth is that they are not well versed in mental health and they do not have the time to give to mental health issues, so they go to short term fixes, which are referrals (which is great) or medication (which are also fine). But the truth is mental health is more than what medical professionals can help with.

Did you know that it has been estimated that 75 – 90 percent of all visits to primary care physicians are for stress related problems?

While some may argue that the stigma of mental health and counseling is lessening, I argue that while the stigma may be lessening to some degree the importance and value of therapy is still underwhelming.

Here are a few examples that I have encountered recently:

• My local business journal does an annual “Best of” where citizens can vote for the best in the city. The list of professions is long, but I will give you one guess as to at least vocation that is not listed, counseling. I wrote the business journal to inquire as to why, but I have yet to hear back.
• Insurance companies grossly under pay therapists, no matter how good/effective they are. Rather than paying therapists a reasonable rate and allowing them to make a decent living without burning themselves out, they are forced to accept pitiful reimbursement rates and have to stack up clients in order to make ends meet. This not only compromises care, but also encourages therapists to go to a private pay model which gets in the way of people being able to access services.
• The local Chamber of Commerce wrote an article in the business journal in 2017 highlighting the fact that the lowest attended seminars that were hosted at the chamber had to do with stress
• and burnout. Also highlighting the fact that physical wellness often has a larger draw
• Similarly, When workplace wellness programs are encouraged whether it is in the business journal or even googled, you will see that what is highlighted is mostly incentives that help people stay physically well. And, while one cannot deny that this feeds into good mental health it is not the whole equation.

So what is the solution?

Even though it is not typically like me to stir up and write posts like this, I believe it is conversations like this one that need to start happening everywhere.

 We have to start making mental health part of workplace policies. We have to include mental health and substance abuse professionals in business networking events. We have to prioritize mental health and take a proactive approach to our mental health versus a reactive approach. We have to lobby for insurance companies to value mental health the way other professions are valued. But it starts with each of us.