Kanye West Is Not Mad, But A Broken Man

In the wake of Kanye West’s nervous breakdown, I can not help but feel sorry for him. Contrary to what the world sees, I see a broken man. Today the media is filled with reports that Kanye has been taken to an L.A hospital following a disturbance 911 call. This unfortunate incident happened after the rapper performed just three songs on Saturday night before embarking on a rant criticizing Facebook, Hillary Clinton and Jay Z. After dropping his microphone and walking off stage, Kanye West cancelled the rest of his Saint Pablo Tour.

Despite the fame, fortune and the tough personality Kanye portrays, I see a man who suffers from loss and rejection. Kanye’s breakdown has happened in the month that his mother died. Kanye West’s mother Donda West died in November 2007 after suffering complications from plastic surgery. This must be a very difficult month for Kanye despite the hard front he puts on. Kanye, being the only child of his mother, was very close to Donda. He dedicated a lot of his songs to her. Kanye says the saddest event in his life was losing his mother. He still finds it hard to talk about her without shedding tears.

Kanye West’s step brother Hal Carmicheal once spoke out that after the loss of his mother, Kanye became very scared that other people he loved would be taken away from him. His step brother alleged that Kanye never forgave himself for moving his mother from New York City to L.A.

As an only child without siblings, the closest Kanye can get to having siblings is friends whom he sees as brothers. Kanye has always expressed his admiration for Jay Z, but over recent years his friendship to Jay Z seems to have deteriorated rapidly, with Kanye seemingly the injured party. To me, Kanye displays emotions of someone who is clearly hurt and feels rejected by Jay Z. In 2014, Kanye wanted Jay Z to be the best man at his wedding to Kim Kardashian and it was reported that Jay-Z turned down the offer. To make it worse Jay Z and Beyonce did not even attend the wedding. For someone as famous as Kanye West, it must have been very humiliating for him, such public rejection must have been hard to swallow.

His wedding day would have been the day he needed the people he loved next to him. He would have missed the presence of his mother. So the rejection from Jay Z must have added more wounds to his pain, confirming his fears that the people he loves always leaves him. At his wedding to Kim, there didn’t seem to be any of his close relatives present. The wedding was more of a Kardashian party.

Despite the loss and rejection Kanye has suffered, I can’t also help but wonder why there is a certain pattern in the men who marry or date the Kardashian women. The men seems to have some meltdown or their careers deteriorate. From Bruce Jenner, Ray Jay, Lamar Odom, Kris Humphries to Scott Disick, it seemed something went wrong with these men after their romantic affiliations with the Kardashians. Is this the curse of the Kardashian women?

I do not believe Kanye is mentally unstable in need of hospitalization, I think he just needs to find himself and heal from what is hurting him. The fact that he was resisting to go to hospital makes it all very sad. He had to be handcuffed and restrained, which is very damaging to a person’s self worth and dignity, especially when they believe there is nothing mentally wrong with them. As a former mental health nurse, I always sympathize with people who are taken to mental hospitals against their will. Sometimes it’s in the patient’s best interest but sometimes people are also victims of the mental health system and are forced into treatment they do not need.

What I have learnt from this unfortunate incident is that, we all suffer from loss and rejection, whether rich or poor and it’s how we deal with it that matters. Money does not buy happiness and a sound mind. Sometimes all we need is love, not just love from other people but self-love and acceptance. To Kanye I say to you, you need to accept yourself as a man and an artist. Whether you get an award or not, your music is still good enough. There is more to love than just receiving it. Your mother gave you the love, but now you have two beautiful children who are completely dependent on your love. Today I pray that you find the love and healing you desperately need before something really tragic happens. The best thing you can do for your mother is to pass the love she gave you to her grandchildren.