It's not you, it's societal ideologies

When I graduated from college I remember feeling exhilarated about the potential life ahead of me. The possibilities seemed endless. Each morning, I would ist in this Starbucks for hours, diligently applying to over 100 jobs a week. I was so determined to find my dream job and I knew it was a numbers game.

Months later, and after a relatively intense four-stage interview process, I landed the dream job. It was great. My life felt complete.

However, a month into this dream job, as I stood on the escalator amongst as sea of commuters heading to work in the city, gliding up into the light to face this new reality, I felt like a rat. Literally. I was a cog in a machine stuck in the rat race. Although it was exciting at first, there was this illusion of success forming slowly around me. The tall buildings. The suits. The people on their cell phones. The Apple watches.

What was this feeling trying to tell me?

Well, now I know. The fact is our world was created by a capitalist ideology.

Let me explain…

“Capitalism: a political and economic theory which states that individuals are free. They are free to make money, own businesses, sell goods and services and crucially own private property.”

This definition seems to make you believe that you are “free,” however, a more precise description of a capitalist ideology is a set of beliefs and principles that encompass the relentless pursuit of profit, by any means necessary.

While it is true, to a certain extent, you are free, this ideology can be very damaging if you fall outside of the category of those “free” individuals who amass substantial wealth (i.e. middle and lower class). The wealthy are very much in control of everything we do, including for example, middle class taxes. This example in particular seems to cause this irrelevant (and dare I say, planned) tension between middle and lower class i.e. the middle class blame the lower class because they have to pay high taxes which apparently benefit the poor. However, this tax problem is not because of the lower class, who are genuinely struggling and in need of those benefits, but rather the wealthy who decide who pays the most taxes and how the money will be spent.

Adding to this complexity and tension is the middle class’s tendency to idolize the wealthy, as exemplified by reality shows like “Selling Sunset” or the Kardashian phenomenon. This idolization drives us to aspire to emulate the rich and essentially turn on the poor. In reality, middle and lower classes should be joining forces to challenge this inherently unfair system.

So you can see how as capitalist ideologies continue to exist, the wealthy continue to control the rhetoric that this belief system is not a belief system but it is a fact of life.

Capitalist ideologies impact our mental wellness.

For example, it is commonly accepted that everyone should aspire to own their own home. Over this, this belief “I should own a home” has evolved into an unquestionable truth. However, many Native American nations, in contrast for instance, don’t believe that land is something that can be owned; to them, it’s like trying to own the air we breathe.

By capitalism posing as a natural way of seeing the world, this repressive ideology prevents us from understanding the material conditions in which we live because it refuses to acknowledge that these conditions have any bearing on the way we see the world.

We believe this is our truth: we must have a home, we must have nice clothes and we must make lots of money.

But these ideas are not true, and we are not free in a capitalist system because it is unequal. Even though this belief system perpetuates the idea that anyone can hit the jackpot, and that if you work hard enough you can be “successful.”

Let’s consider though our basic necessity of shelter and food, which requires a source of income. But to earn a good income, you must be fortunate enough to be born to parents capable of providing care, financing a university education, and offering guidance along the way. As we all know, this is a luxury not afforded to every individual born in the Western world.

Now, you might be wondering why I’m addressing capitalist ideologies in this week’s letter?

As you can see, this belief system exerts influence over nearly every aspect of our lives, often even when we may not consciously recognize it, it has a substantial impact on our mental wellbeing.

I wanted to bring this ideology to the surface of our consciousness, so you realise that the problems you have with mental wellbeing are not always because of you, it’s these ideologies that impact us. 

Many of the factors that impact your mental wellbeing are from your external world. For example:

• Income inequality: capitalist systems often result in significant income inequality, where a small percentage of individuals amass substantial wealth while many others struggle to make ens meet. This income disparity can lead to chronic stress and anxiety among those who feel financially marginalized or unable to achieve their financial goals which contributes to mental health stress.

• Work-life balance: capitalist ideologies prioritise economic productivity and profit, which leads to long working hours and a culture of overwork. Especially as a working parent which I have noticed has played a major part in stress and anxiety in the community. This work centric approach results in burnout, decreased work-life balance and a lack of time for self-care and personal relationships which obviously are all detrimental to mental wellbeing.

• Consumerism and materialism: (this is a big one!) capitalist ideologies promote consumerism and the pursuit of material wealth as markers of success and happiness. This constant pursuit of material possessions leads to a cycle of never-ending desire, comparison and dissatisfaction, massively negatively impacting our self-esteem and overall mental health as we feel perpetually unfulfilled.

And it is the power of this ideology, of our belief in the naturalness and fairness of this so-called American dream, that has blinded us to the harsh realities it masks.

This week I encourage everyone to take a moment (perhaps a meditation moment) to reflect on the way your external world has impacted the way you think about yourself and the people around you.

Perhaps we could even start to open our eyes a little more and realise that what our world tells us is not always real.

The way you perceive your external world can impact your internal world.

Sending you all much love,

Meagan

I have a new Instagram if you want to follow updates here: @hapehaven 

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