shan wrote: ↑Wed Feb 10, 2021 9:12 am
Forewarning: I’ve been simmering on this the last couple of days and just ended up writing a whole-ass essay on it, I'm sorry in advance!
I looked up Adrian’s account a week or so ago when the bedding thing was everywhere because why not? Since then, his account has been sitting in my recent searches and I keep flicking over when a story is lit up. Boy do I wish I could take that back. My knowledge of Adrian before was super, super limited. I remember something coming up for a hot sec on the main thread a while back where someone said something about not letting Dan get off easy for trying to move more professionally into the mental health sphere when Adrian got so much shit for it. I looked up his YouTube channel and watched his video on depression and what I said then, and what I still firmly believe, is that the two are not even remotely similar in their approach to talking about mental health or the level of thought put into the content they produce. Not to mention the feeling of responsibility to their followers to provide educated information. They are not the same person and Dan is absolutely afforded a benefit of the doubt that Adrian is not, based on his history of being careful with the information he puts out on the internet and the provision of resources for people who want/need to know more on this topic in particular.
Anyway, Dan’s not the point here, it’s just fascinating seeing two people brought up in a relatively similar environment who both experienced trauma in their childhood/teen years (albeit different forms) can both manifest that experience into a career centring around ‘living your truth’ and taking it to mean two completely different things. His age is honestly irrelevant. By 23 you either have a smidge of empathy and compassion in your body or you don’t.
Back on topic, his coaching insta is so much worse than I had imagined. He comes across as a spoiled white boy who didn’t get into the Oxford English Literature degree he wanted so took off around Europe on who knows’ dime to write tone-deaf prose meant to inspire like some wannabe Jack Kerouac. That may have been a bit harsh but it’s not like he’s ever going to read it and it’s true so...
I’m really passionate about mental health, it’s a topic that’s really important to me and the flippant way Adrian approaches it every god damn time makes me so mad. His attitude toward mental health adds more stigma to therapeutic and medicinal treatment of serious illnesses that in most cases require legitimate professional intervention, not just a bit of meditation and cutting animal products from your diet.
Clearly the vast majority of his followers come from the phandom. I had a look through the comments of his posts after reading about it here and, to me at least, most of the messages of support read very juvenile and are likely very young followers who are very much that, followers. An important part of growing up is realising that people you look up to can be wrong and these people ain’t there yet. To be fair though, I also think life coaching as a career in general feeds on the vulnerable. If you can present a semi-successful existence, be it real or a glamour, and talk out of your ass with authority not matter how inaccurate or harmful what you say is, people searching for hope will follow and listen. God, I really really hope no one here is one and I didn't just insult someone... From that awful IGTV video he’s clearly got the self-confident narcissistic bit down pat holy wow.
Obviously no one should be tearing him down on social media over personal topics but kudos to the people who sent the comments quoted earlier in the thread with level-headed, reasonable feedback about his posts. I had smoke coming out of my ears with his choice of how to deal with someone trying to provide him a little perspective on the millions of lives destroyed by this pandemic.
I used to be a bit confused why Dan didn't follow and support his brother but I now completely understand. Can you imagine the shitstorm if he shared Adrian’s content? If they had any contact other than Christmas visit crossovers, I would honestly be shocked. That’s two very conflicting, very vocal and very public viewpoints.
This has been my entirely too long rant on why people with crappy POVs on mental health should not have a platform: Adrian edition.
TLDR; I hate so much about the things that Adrian chooses to be.
I’m hoping they were joking but it didn’t seem like it