Bicyclist hits the road to remove stigma of mental health issues | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis

Unashamed of his past bouts of depression, Takumi Hara pedals across Japan on a bicycle to spread the word, basketball in hand.

After 25-year-old Hara plays basketball with students at local schools, she leaves them a message.

“If you or anyone else around you is suffering from mental health issues, please contact me at any time,” he tells them.

Hara has battled depression for the past four years.

On March 11, 2018, he started swallowing all the liquids in his room at random.

Hara said that although she did not wish to die at the time, she wanted to escape her reality and free herself from all the stress in her life.

He drank shampoo, detergent, bleach and other liquids. He felt something regurgitate in his stomach and began to lose consciousness.

DEPRESSION DURING JOB SEARCH

As of March 2018, Hara was a third-year student at Keio University, one of the most prestigious private universities in Japan.

Hara was actively involved in job fairs and an internship program.

He had attended a private high school even though his brothers attended public schools.

“I was sorry that my tuition was so expensive,” he said. “I wanted to join a big company to pay my family for their help.”

I was under great pressure.

Hara was the vice-captain of the college basketball club and felt stressed by his relationships with other members.

I was losing confidence at the time. The stress increased and she continued to have sleepless nights.

His stress and fatigue levels peaked.

I’m so tired, he thought.

On March 11, 2018, he canceled an appointment at a job fair and was absent from his club for the first time without prior notice.

A club member became concerned about Hara because he did not show up and could not be contacted. The member went to Hara’s bedroom where he found him collapsed on the floor.

When Hara regained consciousness, she was in a hospital. She lost about 10 kilograms in just 10 days.

I would rather have just died, Hara thought.

Later, he was diagnosed with depression. For about a month, she stayed in a psychiatric hospital.

He worried that “some people might spread weird rumors about me. Others may see me as crazy.”

So, he only told his family and some members of the club about his illness.

After undergoing cognitive behavioral therapy to correct his thinking and behaving, he made a mental recovery.

During the summer of his senior year, he received a few job offers.

I’m perfectly fine now, she thought.

Hara felt that she could not go back to being the person she had been if she continued to see a psychiatrist. Without his doctor’s permission, she stopped going to the hospital.

After graduating from his university, he started working at an insurance company. But in less than a year, he began to feel her mental condition deteriorating again.

I was working in an office in Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, and had no one to turn to.

His deepening depression reminded him of his previous mental illness issues during his school days.

I have to recover, and I’m not doing it right because I’m not trying hard enough, she thought.

Hara didn’t want a doctor to tell her she was depressed again, so she didn’t go to the hospital and kept working.

In June 2020, his family urged him to go see a doctor and he finally agreed and visited a hospital. A psychiatrist told him that he had developed depression again.

He was temporarily absent from his company and continued to suffer from his disorder.

At that time, an old high school classmate called him by chance.

When Hara told her about her illness, her schoolmate replied, “Actually, I also took a temporary leave of absence from my company due to my poor mental health condition a year ago.”

I’m not the only person who finds it difficult to tell others that I have a mental illness, Hara thought.

She discovered that she might have been thinking about depression too negatively and finding it more difficult than necessary to see a psychiatrist.

Hara thought more people would seek medical attention if the public’s opinion of depression changes.

SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCES WITH OTHERS

He decided to share his experiences directly with others while cycling in Japan.

Hara quit her job and in March 2021 she began her journey. He had cycled through 27 prefectures until the end of 2021.

You get online advice from your doctor every few months.

Hara visits the schools and tells the students, “I’m happy if you remember me as a strange older brother who came to see you on a bicycle.”

Due to a resurgence of COVID-19 cases amid the sixth wave of infections, he is now waiting for the right time to resume his journey at his parents’ home in Osaka.

“I hope that society can be a place that allows people to live without feeling ashamed of suffering from depression,” he said.

Hara said that she keeps thinking about what she can do for others while riding her bike.