10 K-Dramas That Bring Awareness to Mental Health Matters
We’re singling out our favorite K-dramas portraying mental health issues in a realistic light while treating them with grace and respect
Many of us turned into K-drama aficionados when lockdown started because they had a positive impact on our emotional well-being. Despite being stuck at home, we found comfort in Captain Ri and Yoon Se-ri’s against-all-odds romance and felt inspired by Park Saeroyi’s drive to make something out of himself. Those stories and those characters, among many others that we were yet to meet at that point, did wonders for us.
While not a novel theme in Korean dramas, today’s directors, scriptwriters, and actors are making marked efforts to respectfully portray mental health issues onscreen. It’s a huge step forward for the industry given how mental health stigma is highly prevalent in South Korea. We viewers get to know and understand more about the different types of mental illnesses and how these are managed, further broadening our perspectives in the process.
We’re singling out 10 of our favorite K-dramas, all of which portray mental health issues in a realistic light while treating them with grace and respect.
Possible spoilers and trigger warnings ahead. Please proceed at your own risk.
10 K-Dramas That Bring Awareness to Mental Health Matters
10 K-Dramas That Bring Awareness to Mental Health Matters
It’s Okay to Not Be Okay (2020)
Lauded for depicting mental health issues and neurodiversity in a positive light, this romantic drama remains one of the most compelling watches on streaming service Netflix. Top billed Hallyu actor Kim Soo-hyun stars as Moon Gang-tae, a selfless and empathetic caregiver at OK Psychiatric Hospital. He is devoted to looking after his autistic older brother, Moon Sang-tae (Oh Jung-se), whose trauma stems from witnessing their mother’s murder. Elbowing her way into their lives is the abrasive Ko Moon-young (Seo Ye-ji), a morbid children’s book author who develops an obsession with Gang-tae.
Photo Credit: tvN, Netflix
It’s Okay to Not Be Okay (2020)
Sang-tae’s character has received much praise. He is able to go about on his own, taking public transport unassisted and working part-time at a pizza parlor. Moon-young, diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder, is volatile and wildly impulsive. She displays little to no remorse for her actions because her condition makes it difficult for her to empathize with others. As they begin to heal from their respective traumas, we see Gang-tae actively seeking his independence and Moon-young growing more understanding.
Photo Credit: tvN, Netflix
It’s Okay to Not Be Okay (2020)
Because of its hospital setting, we meet side characters who suffer from various other ailments. And even though not all of them are deemed well enough to be discharged—healing is a journey, after all—each one finds some form of peace in the end.
Photo Credit: tvN, Netflix
Kill Me, Heal Me (2015)
A warm-hearted chaebol Cha Do-hyun (Ji Sung) hides a secret: he developed dissociative identity disorder in the aftermath of traumatic experiences from his past, and now shares his body with six other identities, each one surfacing when triggered by a particular memory or feeling.
Photo Credit: MBC
Kill Me, Heal Me (2015)
In hopes of regaining control of his life, he approaches Oh Ri-jin (Hwang Jung-eum), a compassionate psychiatry resident with a short temper, to help him. On top of other pressing concerns, she begins to fall for one of his personalities, further complicating the already messy situation.
Photo Credit: MBC
Kill Me, Heal Me (2015)
Ji Sung’s performance was well-received by critics and viewers. Though comedic at times—one of his personalities is a 17-year-old girl crushing on Ri-jin’s twin brother, who is played by Park Seo-joon—his portrayal was never offensive and always executed with empathetic grace. It’s easy to distinguish which of his personalities is currently running the show, even without costume or make-up changes. We see how this illness has devastated his life to the point that he opted to suffer alone by keeping it secret.
Photo Credit: MBC
Good Doctor (2013)
Park Si-on (Joo Won) is an autistic savant with genius-level memory and keen spatial skills. Hoping to pursue a career in the pediatric surgery track, he comes into the employ of Sungwon University Hospital as a resident, where he is given six months to prove himself capable. But due to his medical and emotional condition, and atypical social conventions, he is shunned by his co-workers, making it difficult for him to fit in.
Photo Credit: KBS
Good Doctor (2013)
A tragic incident from his childhood fuels Si-on to succeed despite the odds stacked up against him. Support comes in the form of his adoptive father, Woo Suk-choi (Ho Jin-chin) and colleague Cha Yoon-seo (Moon Chae-won), who he eventually develops feelings for.
Photo Credit: KBS
Good Doctor (2013)
Even though he is a genius, Si-won is belittled due to his autism. Many turn a judgmental eye to his relationship with Yoon-seo, questioning how someone who is “normal” can get involved with someone they see as “other." Inspirational at its core, Good Doctor showcases that learning to accept and understand each other’s differences makes the world a better place.
Photo Credit: KBS
It’s Okay, That’s Love (2014)
This SBS drama received a plaque of appreciation from the Korean Society for Schizophrenic Research due to its honest yet optimistic depiction of mental illnesses. Main character Jang Jae-yeol (Jo In-sung) is a popular mystery novel author and radio DJ who suffers from schizophrenia and obsessive-compulsive disorder. When his mother accidentally kills his abusive father, he falsely testified that it was his brother to blame, causing him to develop an intense guilt. He can also only sleep soundly in bathtubs and has a thing for the color yellow.
Photo Credit: SBS
It’s Okay, That’s Love (2014)
Ji Hae-soo (Gong Hyo-jin), a first-year fellow in a hospital’s psychiatry department, is self-diagnosed with having anxiety issues and sex phobia. There is much friction between the two, and her aversion towards relationships makes it difficult for her to trust Jae-yeol.
Photo Credit: SBS
It’s Okay, That’s Love (2014)
Aside from OCD and schizophrenia, dissociative disorder and Tourette’s syndrome—the character Park Soo-kwang, played by Lee Kwang-soo, has this—are also given their due. It’s Okay, That’s Love was instrumental in breaking social prejudice, allowing future mental health-centric dramas to gain traction.
Photo Credit: SBS, Tumblr
Hyde Jekyll, Me (2015)
Blessed with looks, brains, and money, Wonder Land theme park owner Gu Seo-jin (Hyun Bin) is right on track to becoming the next CEO of his family conglomerate. There is, however, a major setback to his success: his dissociative identity disorder.
Photo Credit: SBS
Hyde Jekyll, Me (2015)
When his heart rate exceeds 150, he turns into Robin, a kind and gentle personality with a savior complex. Believing that Robin is a manifestation of guilt triggered by a traumatic incident from his past, the cold and cynical Seo-jin decides to keep to himself at the cost of actively engaging in any meaningful relationships.
Photo Credit: SBS
Hyde Jekyll, Me (2015)
Set to take over as the grand master of Wonder Land’s circus act, Jang Ha-na (Han Ji-min) has dreams of restoring the failing show to its former glory. She often finds herself arguing with Seo-jin, whose heart rate spikes whenever they butt heads. A kidnapping incident involving Seo-jin’s therapist forces them to cooperate with each other, which also leads to more “appearances” from Robin. Thinking he is Seo-jin’s twin, Ji-min begins to fall for him, leading to a complex love triangle. While it suffers from a crawling plot line, the story is still rich with rewarding moments for its emotionally burdened characters.
Photo Credit: SBS
Healer (2014)
A special snowflake of a drama that manages to successfully tie action, comedy, romance, and even political plot lines together, Healer is also a deep dive into how a traumatic experience from a person’s past heavily impacts their present circumstances. The resurfacing of a decades-old incident involving an illegal pro-democracy broadcast that aired during the Fifth Republic in South Korea brings together Seo Jung-hu (Ji Chang-wook), a night courier with the monicker “Healer;” Chae Young-shin (Park Min-young), a reporter from a tabloid news website; and Kim Mun-ho (Yoo Ji-tae), a veteran journalist employed by a major broadcast station.
Photo Credit: KBS
Healer (2014)
Separated from her biological family as a child, Young-shin has only a vague memory of wandering along a highway. This gives her a slight fear of cars. Adopted and raised by a kind-hearted lawyer and his wife, she grows up to be a well-adjusted, confident young woman. However, ingrained trauma from her last moments with her mother causes her to suffer from panic attacks whenever she witnesses acts of violence—which are far too common when she becomes involved with Healer. He’s quick to notice this, though, and always makes a point of covering her eyes in some capacity when he goes to town on the baddies.
Photo Credit: KBS
Be Melodramatic (2019)
A perfect watch for the unmarried, urban millennial, Be Melodramatic is a female-centric drama that revolves around the lives of three women nearing their 30s: rookie screenwriter Lim Jin-too (Chun Woo-hee), documentary director Lee Eun-jung (Jeon Yeo-been), and marketing team leader Hwang Han-joo (Han Ji-eun). They’re flawed, immature, and overzealous, doing whatever they feel like without kowtowing to bigger responsibilities. Not at all a far cry from the young adults of today, right?
Photo Credit: JTBC
Be Melodramatic (2019)
Still reeling from the early death of her boyfriend and her own attempted suicide, Eun-jung’s severe depression and inability to move on comprises the bulk of her storyline. She is able to function normally, but is simply going through the motions due to her grief. Her friends and brother, Lee Hyo-bong (Yoon Ji-on)—who, in a major step forward for Korean dramas, is openly gay with a relationship that is actually depicted onscreen—encourage her to go to therapy. These sessions are also shown, allowing us to see how Eun-jung begins to move on. Anyone who’s lost a loved one will definitely be able to relate.
Photo Credit: JTBC
SKY Castle (2018)
Plenty of kids know and understand how it feels to have parents that pressure them to do well in school. Increase that by tenfold, and you have the over-achieving fathers and overzealous mothers of SKY Castle. To these uber wealthy and uber successful families, nothing matters more than getting their children into one of South Korea’s top three universities. Anything less than top three is a fatal embarrassment. The mothers stop at nothing to employ the most elite tutors, while some fathers take matters into their own cruel hands.
Photo Credit: JTBC
SKY Castle (2018)
Take Kang Ye-seo (Kim Hye-yoon). An academically gifted child, her dream is to enter Seoul National University’s faculty to follow in her father’s footsteps of becoming a doctor. Elated to have been chosen by Kim Joo-young (Kim Seo-hyung), she puts up with the exam coordinator’s sadistic methods, which have driven previous students to end their lives.
Photo Credit: JTBC, Tumblr
SKY Castle (2018)
Meanwhile, Cha Seo-joon (Kim Dong-hee) and Cha Ki-joon (Jo Byeong-kyu) are locked by their perfectionist father in a dark room for hours, forced to solve difficult problems and are punished for mistakes.
Photo Credit: JTBC
SKY Castle (2018)
The kids realize that success isn’t worth endangering their lives and learn to stand up for themselves. Though it takes awhile for their parents to come around, they too, set aside their old ways to have better relationships with their families.
Photo Credit: JTBC
Clean With Passion For Now (2018)
Jang Seon-kyul (Yoon Kyun-sang) suffers from severe mysophobia. Terrified of contamination and germs, he is obsessed with tidiness and even owns his own service company, Cleaning Fairy. Meticulous about his hygiene, he wears gloves when coming in contact with others and carries a spray bottle full of disinfectant that he uses on the regular. While he downplays his condition at times, it’s actually quite serious and prevents him from enjoying things the way most people would.
Photo Credit: JTBC
Clean With Passion For Now (2018)
His world is turned upside down when he falls for Gil Oh-sol (Kim Yoo-jung), a messy girl who doesn’t really care about hygiene and always seems to mess up his routine. Aware of the detriments of his condition, he goes to great lengths to enact his own versions of “normal dates,” such as renting out theaters and having his employees disinfect them. As Oh-sol’s feelings for him grow, she understands his illness more and is willing to help him any way she can. And for the first time since getting diagnosed, Seon-kyul wants to get treated to make things easier for his lady love.
Photo Credit: JTBC
What’s Wrong With Secretary Kim? (2018)
A narcissistic corporate hotshot (Park Seo-joon as Lee Young-joon) realizes he’s been harboring feelings for his longtime secretary (Park Min-young as Kim Mi-so) after she turns in her resignation. For the most part, What’s Wrong With Secretary Kim? Is a lighthearted romantic comedy with a will-they-or-won’t-they vibe, but it’s the shared trauma experienced by the main couple that steers the plot forward.
Photo Credit: tvN
What’s Wrong With Secretary Kim? (2018)
Young-joon’s aversion towards zip ties Mi-so’s arachnophobia are results of a kidnapping incident from their childhood. Intent on having them commit suicide with her, their captor changes her mind when Young-joon intervenes. She hangs herself, leaving the kids still tied up. Because of the shadow their kidnapper’s body casts, Young-joon tells a barely awake Mi-so that it’s just a spider.
Photo Credit: tvN
What’s Wrong With Secretary Kim? (2018)
The show portrays deep-seated trauma as something that is not easily overcome. We see how it shadowed Young-joon all the way to his adult years, and how seeing a similarly dressed woman triggered Mi-so’s recollection of a dim memory. Fortunately, they find each other again and are able to move forward from their past.
Photo Credit: tvN
Which of these healing dramas about mental health make your list of favorites? We honestly can't choose!
Lead photos of K-dramas Hyde Jekyll, Me, It's Okay To Not Be Okay, and It's Okay, That's Love courtesy of tvN, SBS