Stigma

Having a mental illness/disease is difficult in and of itself. When it comes to dealing with others there are often more issues at play. It is not as if you can see what is going on when someone has Bipolar/Depression/Anxiety. If we had a heart attack, stroke, diabetes, or a broken bone it is easily identifiable. We usually don't display any outward signs of our disease/illness, so it makes things difficult for those around us to recognize and understand. Unfortunately, ours is a hidden illness and a minute-by-minute struggle every day.

Some may think that we are "mentally unstable", "deficient", or "too sensitive" in some way.  This is untrue, most of us are very intelligent and creative people. We have a verifiable chemical imbalance in the brain that affects our thoughts, emotions, and actions. It is not something we asked for, just something we were born with. What we want is a bit of understanding about our situation. Being asked things like, "how ARE WE today?" or "are WE FEELING okay today?" is degrading and demeaning. There is no "we", only me; I don't have multiple personality disorder like Sybil, nor do I have any clue as to how YOU are feeling today. I can only tell you about me and how I am feeling.

Questions like this and pandering to us as if we were children are part of what separates us from others and creates a stigma around mental illness. Why would we want to fake a mental illness? Most of us wouldn't wish this on our worst enemy, much less ourselves. I don't know anyone who wants to be locked in a Psychiatric Facility, called "Crazy" or "Psycho", or willingly go through EST treatments ( electro-shock therapy). All I want is someone to TRY to understand what I have & am going through, and to be treated like anyone else. I don't think it is too much to ask. I also know that it will take a lot of discussion and learning to change the mindset around mental illness.

My hope is that this blog will be a starting point for others to learn more about me and my disease and to start the discussion about mental illness/disease to demystify and acknowledge it.