Decoupling Productivity From Self-Worth
NGL writes about combatting perceptions of worthlessness and going to therapy for the first time
Every week features new newsletters from Nathan Graber-Lipperman examining media, business, and pop culture through a Gen Z lens, as well as telling stories from his personal entrepreneurial journey. To read his last letter, click here.
Author’s Note: The aim of this essay is to talk about my experiences with mental health and depression with honesty. Therefore, some aspects may trigger an adverse reaction. If at any point you are feeling uncomfortable or upset, I advise that you please stop reading it immediately and talk to your support network.
A month ago, I went to therapy for the first time. And I was scared as shit.
Technically, I guess I didn’t “go” anywhere. It was all over Zoom — Cisco Webex, for that matter. It’s been a mostly frictionless process: I login at our scheduled time, we talk for an hour or so, we wrap up by focusing on how to approach the next week, and then we’re done.
I didn’t really have anything to be overly anxious about. Mental illness is pretty normal. In fact, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, 1 in 5 U.S. adults experience mental illness each year. Additionally…
