In one post, user @Stavalopulos<\/a> wrote, \u201cThe lion does not concern himself with the cough he\u2019s had since COVID.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe lion does not concern himself with his noticeable memory loss, brain fog, and slight cognitive decline,\u201d wrote @MaybeMackenzie<\/a> in another post. Are young guys really downsizing medical concerns or is it just a coded way to be vulnerable without judgment? Because the lion may not be concerned\u2014but mental health experts sorta are.<\/p>\n First, What’s With the Lion? <\/p>\n If the phrase sounds familiar to you, you\u2019re not alone. It’s a reference to the first season of Game of Thrones<\/a>, when Lord Tywin Lannister tells his son, \u201cThe lion does not concern himself with the opinions of a sheep,\u201d while talking about the importance of not worrying about what others think. <\/p>\n The meme then morphed to guys expressing shortcomings like screen addiction or not getting a driver\u2019s license. It\u2019s also been used\u2014seriously or not\u2014to reject social norms such as tipping and wearing deodorant<\/a>.<\/p>\n Linguist Adam Aleksic broke down the current use of the lion meme in his TikTok channel, Etymology Nerd<\/a>. In the video, he says the lion meme has taken off in popularity because it juxtaposes authenticity within the sigma grindset-style<\/a> meme, creating “a a sense of dissonance that allows the lion to cloak himself inside behind an additional veil of satire.”<\/p>\n “The lion knows that speaking in the third-person effectively detaches the self, making it acceptable to express an otherwise cringe idea,” Aleksic explains in the video.<\/p>\n Posting like this could be seen as a coded way to talk about concerns without putting yourself out there too much, says Aaron P. Brinen, PsyD<\/a>, assistant professor of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. This meme allows people to joke around while still opening up about their personal struggles, he says.<\/p>\n \u201cThis message is a reaction to the deep fear they harbor about the future,\u201d says John E. Mayer, PhD<\/a>, clinical psychologist and author of Family Fit: Find Your Balance in Life<\/a>. \u201cThink of it as affirmation quality. In other words, \u2018I know we are all afraid, but remember you have the strengths and resources to overcome anything.\u2019\u201d <\/p>\n OK, But Is It Really That Deep? <\/p>\n While there\u2019s nothing bad about making jokes online, Brinen says there could be an issue if someone is using the lion meme as an avoidance strategy. With how the meme is worded, he says it’s possible that people are brushing off long COVID<\/a> symptoms or indicating that they’re genuinely less inclined to seek out proper treatment. <\/p>\n \u201cWhen we don\u2019t face these things and think about them, we\u2019re not processing it or coming up with a plan,\u201d Brinen explains. \u201cThen there\u2019s also the messaging that makes people with brain fog out to be dramatic.\u201d And it could influence people watching these videos to trivialize their own symptoms. <\/p>\n \u201cThe lion has seen this post quite a few times and is worried about the fact that other lions feel similar,” reads one comment on @MaybeMackenzie\u2019s post<\/a>. <\/p>\n
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