10 Marvel Superheroes Who Have Battled Mental Health Issues
From Spider-Man to Daredevil, here are the Marvel heroes who inspire everyone to keep going.
In recent years, mental health has developed into one of the most widely debated topics in the world. More and more people are opening up about their experiences with disorders like anxiety and depression. But despite the progress, there’s an ingrained stigma attached to mental health, with many still choosing to suffer in silence.
In order to break down the stigma, mental health needs to be constantly talked about in TV, films and other media. The more it’s normalised, the easier it will become for people to share their feelings and overcome the fear of being judged.
When it comes to mediums that portray mental health in a realistic way, comics are at the top of the list. It’s easy to think of superheroes as unstoppable juggernauts who are beyond the comprehension of us mere mortals, but many of them suffer from the same struggles that everyday people go through, including issues with mental health.
The Marvel universe contains a variety of characters who have all experienced difficulties with their own mental wellbeing. Given the company's motto of wanting to 'reflect the world outside our window' that should probably be a given, but it makes these arcs no less important.
Heroes fight villains all the time, but it's often their internal struggles that are the most important...
10. Jessica Jones
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a common disorder for anyone who chooses to put their life on the line to save others. Jessica Jones is a superhero that has suffered from PTSD for years.
In the comics, the source of Jessica’s PTSD came from the time she was put under the control of Zebediah Killgrave, AKA The Purple Man. Killgrave used Jessica as his personal puppet, abusing her emotionally, physically and psychologically.
Even after she broke free of his control, the experience would traumatise Jessica for years.
To cope with the pain, the Hell's Kitchen-based PI turned to alcohol and dangerous situations. She did everything she could to ignore her PTSD, to pretend as if it wasn’t there. But after meeting Luke Cage and learning to accept her trauma, Jessica managed to find a way to heal. When Jessica became a mother, she promised she would always remain strong for her daughter, which gave her a renewed sense of purpose and helped her to manage her PTSD one step at a time.