What Does FINE Mean?
I get tired of acronyms — letters that spell out a word and may also stand for the first letters of a word. NASA is okay with me, but I dislike SMART goals, TSA, ATF, and every other government agency. Even more annoying are ones that go on too long and are mystifying to those not already in the know. For example, HHGttG stands for Hitch-Hikers Guide to the Galaxy to SF (science fiction) fans or SMoF (Secret Masters of Fandom).
There are also lots of slogans that make more or less sense, depending. Just Say No. Just Do It. Me Too. Hold My Beer. Keep on Truckin’.
Plenty of acronyms are associated with mental illness, too. SMI. AOT. CARE Courts. BPD. There’s also the infamous FINE. When someone asks how you are and you tell them, “fine,” what that really stands for is Freaked out (or fucked up), Insecure, Neurotic, and Emotional (or empty).
One acronym I’ve been seeing lately is ASK, which stands for Acknowledge, Support, Keep-in-touch. It’s meant to be the “Stop, Drop, and Roll” of how to help a friend who’s having emotional difficulties. I’ve seen PSA (another acronym) ads promoting it on Showtime and MTV (another acronym that is no longer valid). As slogans go, it’s not too bad, although Acknowledge seems a little vague until it’s explained, but Support and Keep-in-touch are pretty clear.
The acronym ASK is associated with the Active Minds organization. Their website is easily findable if you enter “Active Minds” into Google. (The search term ASK brings up too many unrelated hits.) The website it takes you to offers interactive YouTube and “digital experience” links that demonstrate the principles.
Less memorable is ALGEE Assess risk, Listen nonjudgmentally, Give reassurance and information, Encourage appropriate help, and Encourage self-help. It’s a “Mental Health First Aid Action Plan” for helping someone in mental or emotional distress. Assess risk refers to risk of suicide, which may be too complicated a task for non-professionals. The second E, Encourage self-help, refers to suggesting “self-care, self-help strategies, or other ways to get support, such as going out for coffee to talk things over.” Personally, I think the acronym ALGEE is not very memorable and the explanation of the letters is not exactly intuitive.
The slogan that I found most puzzling (although it did get my attention, so it was effective there) is “Seize the Awkward.” The phrase focuses on the idea that, while it may feel a little difficult or awkward to speak to a friend about mental health concerns, you should accept that feeling as natural, then move past the awkwardness and start a helpful or meaningful conversation. The Seize the Awkward website has a lot to offer. There are nine ads for young adults featuring popular or famous spokespeople from music, sports, and other categories. The Ad Council has also provided GIFs, Instagram images, and posters you can use to spread awareness on your own site or location. There is a Campus Toolkit which includes resources on break-ups, loss, suicide, LGBTQ suicide, and racism.
I hereby retract my objection to Seize the Awkward because of its memorability and thoroughness. It’s wonderful. Right up there with Just Do It.
