CHECK Magazin - Gesundheitsmagazin für Männer No.5

MENTAL HEALTH
ENGLISH
#SELFLOVE
FIGHTING YOUR INNER BULLY
Interview: Torsten Schwick
www.mariomendez.net
Creative multitasker Mario Mendez is known as the Beauty Coach on the RBB Real-
Life-TV series “Ganz schön Berlin”. Originally from Tenerife, he studied and worked in
London and eventually settled down in Berlin where he got himself a busy career as
a freelance make-up artist. Like many of his colleagues, the pandemic hit him hard -
and not just professionally. We talk about toxic positivity, toxic perfectionism and what
#selflove is really all about.
How have the lockdowns affected you, not just
professionally but also personally?
I was doing really well before corona. I had
a lot of jobs and was doing what I love. For
me, happiness is getting paid for doing what I
love. And it’s something I was very proud of. I
remember that I went on a holiday to Tenerife
after a very busy time working and then the
first news about the pandemic broke. When I
got back to Berlin, it all started to collapse and
I just couldn’t believe it. I realized I had no real
security net and I started to panic. It’s not that
I hadn’t experienced failure before, but this
time was very different. Because technically I
didn’t fail. The world just came to a stand-still.
What happened then?
I got really scared. I never thought it could
happen to me because I’m usually the person
to help others when they feel down and need
cheering up. I’ve always been a listener. I was
always tough and could focus on moving
forward. But I fell into a spiral of depression
and anxiety. The situation turned out to be a
deadly cocktail of problems that I couldn’t
deal with all at once. Then, from one day to
the next, I just couldn’t stop sleeping. When
I say it now it sounds really weird because
I was literally just in bed, sleeping day and
night. As soon as I started to think I should
be doing something I got so tired again and
went back to sleep. This lasted for about one
month.
So, what did you do to combat this?
I decided to go see my doctor because it was
so scary. The doctor did a complete check-up
and eventually prescribed me anti-depressants.
That is also something I never thought
I’d need. Fortunately the medication did help
me to overcome the initial stage of helplessness
and get out that hole of absolute chaos.
I’m still taking them and it makes me feel safe,
knowing I won’t go down like I did again. And I
understood that it’s ok because it can happen
to anyone.
What other strategies did you discover to
sustain your mental health?
You have to do your homework, of course. I
give myself simple tasks, like drinking a lot of
water, leaving the house and doing something.
Slowly I found that I was actually walking
again and that I will manage somehow. I also
have my creative work, which is still very fulfilling.
I started to paint and craft sculptures
again and have found great pleasure in it. But
of course not everyone enjoys this as much
as I do or has the skills or resources to do it.
What’s important is finding your own way to
commit to yourself and finding out what makes
you happy. You need to care for yourself
and find what you are passionate about.
How is self-care so deeply connected to selflove
and why is it important to address it?
You can easily get stuck in your anxiety,
14 CHECK BERLIN/BRANDENBURG #5