Elmo Highlights Need for Mental Health

It was a simple question, asked by a familiar, friendly – furry – face. But it unleashed a torrent of responses highlighting the ongoing mental health crisis in America.

When one of Sesame Street’s favorite icons posted, “Elmo is just checking in! How is everybody doing?” the thousands of responses on X (formerly Twitter) were telling, according an article in The New York Times.

Some were tongue in cheek. Rainn Wilson, best known for his work as Dwight Schrute on The Office, noted that he was at “a crossroads and frankly could use a little support.”

Some were designed to show off the respondent’s literary chops. Hanif Abdurraqib, a poet, essayist and New York Times contributor, responded, “Elmo each day the abyss we stare into grows a unique horror. One that was previously unfathomable in nature. Our inevitable doom which once accelerated in years, or months, now accelerates in hours, even minutes,” before adding, “However I did have a good grapefruit earlier, thank you for asking.”

Plenty were dismal, lamenting breakups, layoffs, and anxiety about the 2024 election. “Elmo I’m depressed and broke,” one wrote. Another respondent told Elmo her dog had just rolled around in goose feces.

But all kidding aside, was there an overriding theme? “Not so good, Elmo,” said a multitude of responses. As Axios noted, many posts underscored the fact that countless Americans are grappling with mental health:

• Nearly half of Americans report feeling lonely.
• Depression and anxiety keep ticking upward.
• Spending on mental health care surged during the pandemic and continues to rise.
• A Gallup poll showed that 23% of adults in 2023 visited a mental health professional, up from 13% in 2004.

Samantha Maltin, the executive vice president, chief marketing and brand officer of Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit behind Sesame Street, told the New York Times, “I don’t think anyone anticipated how deeply this particular question would resonate. But we’re so thrilled that we did ask.”

She added that the responses highlight a need for free, easy-to-access mental health resrouces for all.

After his post had racked up over 9,000 responses, Elmo posted a follow up in his distinctive voice: “Wow! Elmo is glad he asked!” It continued, “Elmo learned it is important to ask a friend how they are doing.”

One user’s reply? “Somehow this actually legit makes me feel better.”

Read the article in The New York Times or Axios.

 

Holtermann, Callie. “Elmo Asked An Innocuous Question: Elmo was not expecting it to open a yawning chasm of despair.” The New York Times, 30 Jan 2024, https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/30/style/elmo-x-question.html.

Photo credit: screenshot on X