I am the same person I was before you found out I have a mental health disorder.
– Unknown
The above quote popped up in my Facebook memories today. I posted it seven years ago. Just like when I first posted it, this quote struck me as meaningful today for a few reasons. One, I think it fits well with Mental Health Awareness Month. Another reason is that it points out that stigma still exists in our world. The third reason is more personal. Sometimes when I am struggling, I feel alone. At times it seems that my mental health isolates me. It shouldn’t because I am the same person whether I am struggling with my mental health, or I am doing well. Today, I would like to delve into the message of this quote and its relevance in our world.
It is Mental Health Awareness Month. It is a month where many of us put forth extra effort to make others aware of what it is like to live with mental illness and what resources are available. We try to provide an understanding of mental illness and how it affects people. There are efforts to inform people, to raise money, and to join in community. It is an important month for everyone, not just those of us affected by mental illness. This month provides a chance for everyone to learn about mental illness.
The theme NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) is using for Mental Health Awareness Month is “Turning Silence into Connection” as its theme for this year. I think this is a powerful statement. For me it also connects to the above quote. The other day I had an experience where someone asked how I was doing. I was really struggling. So, I said that I was “struggling with my mental health”. This was someone I am close to. Still, I was meant by silence. I am not trying to find fault with this person. The response was genuine. The person did not know how to respond to my comment or the fact that I was struggling. This shows the need for more awareness. We need to spread education about what it is like to live with mental illness. We need people to learn that it is not something to be afraid of or to shun because you do not understand. For my part, I could have told this person what I needed. Instead, I met the silence given toward me with silence of my own. To say the least, it made the conversation awkward until one of us changed the subject. Gone was my chance to feel supported. We did not allow silence to turn into connection. I do not want to use the word “fault”, but I think we both could have handle the situation differently. I could have asked if I could share what I was feeling and what I needed. The other person could have asked me what I was feeling and what I needed. Better conversations grow from awareness efforts. That is why educating people about living with mental illness and supporting someone with a mental illness is so important.
Maybe one way I can turn this silence into connection is to find a time when I am feeling better to explain what I need when I say I am struggling with my mental health. I can share resources from organizations like NAMI. I can share this blog. What I am doing right now is a way to spread awareness. After I post this, I will add posts to my social media accounts to let people know what I posted on my blog and that my blog exists. I do this for every blog post. Will I get the number of reads necessary to make a huge difference? Probably not, but I might just reach the one person who needs to hear that they are not alone in their struggle with mental health. One of my blog posts might encourage someone to seek treatment. The effort is what matters during Mental Health Awareness Month. If we stay silent, we cannot help anyone. If speak about mental illness, we connect and when we connect healing happens.
I guess I just combined my first and third reasons. Mental illness is a lonely illness. When there was silence between the person I shared my struggle with and myself, I not only felt alone, I felt isolated. I think mental illness is a lonely illness. The lack of understanding leads us to isolate. Combined with the mental illness we are already living with, isolation pulls our mood down further, increases our anxiety, or exacerbates other symptoms of mental illness. This is why we need to raise awareness. Knowing we are not alone can help us find the strength to battle our illness.
Stigma is a huge issue when it comes to mental illness. Stigma is defined as negative attitudes, stereotypes, and prejudice directed a people with mental health conditions. It usually results in discrimination and shame. Sure, awareness has helped reduce stigma, but stigma is still there. Just look at our government. Robert Kennedy, Jr, the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, has said, “We will no longer treat psychiatric medications as the default.” He is trying to limit the prescription of psychiatric medications. This angers me. He has no medical or psychiatric training/education. He is pushing for a reduction in the use of psychiatric medications. He has suggested links to violence with some psychiatric medications. This is stigma. He is basing his comments and decisions on stereotypes and prejudice, not medical and psychiatric research.
Conversations about psychiatric medications should be between the patient and their mental health team. Decisions about medication should be between a psychiatrist and their patient. Kennedy’s policies demonstrate the stigma that surrounds mental health. He is minimizing the struggles and pains we go through. People who take psychiatric medications need them. With his policies he is increasing the stigma we face. I should stop here before I get any more political. I leave it at this: Stigma allows policies like this to be put in place. Stigma allows a non-psychiatric professional to think he understands mental illness. This is a reason why we need mental health awareness.
Stigma surfaces everywhere. It is in our pop culture. It is present in the television shows and movies we watch. It is present in our schools and workplaces. Stigma pushes us to hide our mental illness. It also leaves many loved ones and friends unable to understand those in their lives who live with mental illness. We see stigma in jokes people make and insults that are used. How many times have you heard someone use a mental illness as an insult or to describe a behavior that is consider negative? It happens more than any of us think because stigma has engrained in our lives. Awareness is how we fight back.
Awareness can mean different things. It can be as simple as wearing a green ribbon or putting a green ribbon on your car. It can be as challenging as asking a loved one who has a mental illness to explain what they live with. There is so much in between. Raising awareness can be checking out organizations like NAMI. It can be creating lessons for schools to use with students. Going to your local NAMI chapters events NAMI Walks is a great way to get involved and learn about mental illness. It is also a fun event. My local NAMI chapters, united through NAMI Greater Los Angeles County, have their NAMI Walks this Saturday, May 16th. You can attend mental health workshops. Reading mental health blogs or social media content is another way to raise awareness. Hey, look at you! You are raising awareness by reading this post!
The bottom line is that we need to work to make the world a better place for people living with mental illness. We are the same people we were before our diagnosis. Just as my cancer diagnosis did not change who I am, my depression and anxiety diagnoses do not change who I am. People with mental illness are capable of great things. Do a Google search and you will find many successful people who have lived with or are living with mental illness. Read through past posts on my blog. I have written about so many aspects of mental illness. You are bound to learn something. There is a search option on the right side of the post. Search for something related to mental illness, you will find a post that might interest you or even help you or a loved one.
Let me end by saying, we can live with mental illness. It may not be easy. We may face stigma, but we can live positive, productive lives. I hope this post encourages people to learn about mental illness. Even if you have a mental illness, there are things you can learn. I am constantly learning about mental illness, and I have lived with it for almost 40 years. This month and moving forward let’s challenge ourselves to make NAMI’s Mental Health Awareness Month’s theme, “Turning Silence into Connection” a reality and reduce the stigma surrounding mental illness. In doing so, we will make so many people’s lives easier.
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