BipolarChatroom: BipolarChatroom Blog 13

Saturday September 29th 2012

After I posted the above Inspirational Quote to my BipolarChatroom FaceBook page, I have had such a response with it, I wanted to go into more detail about its contents.

Twenty-eight people have liked it and seventy-two people have shared it to their own page, making this the most popular Inspirational Quote I have shared, out of the hundreds there have been.

It really does speak for itself. You should NEVER feel :

Selfish for having depression

Rude for being anxious

That its wrong to have schizophrenia

Anxiety forms a big part of my life, and like I have said before, because people cant see it, some either don't understand, haven't been educated properly about how to approach someone falling in the above categories, or think there isn't a problem because the 'illness' is invisible.

If we had the flu or a broken leg, would some people react and treat us differently, than having a 'mental illness?' Unfortunately, the answer to that question is 'yes'.

I'm not saying that everyone reacts like that, because they don't, but even the minority, whether it being just one person who can make us think differently about ourselves, questioning our diagnosis and making us, therefore, question ourselves about our illness, can make us feel worse about ourselves.

Society does need to change and be educated about people with ALL mental illnesses.

I know there was that advert on television a few years back where that man returned to work and there were all kinds of scenarios in it, including :

How do I approach him?

What if he "Goes into one?"

I don't know what to say to him.

Do I mention the fact he has been off with depression?

But one television advert isn't going to change how people feel, the campaign needs to be on-going.

Those people suffering can sometimes feel like and be treated like someone who has recently been bereaved. People don't always do it, or even realise they are doing it, but avoidance like crossing the road to avoid talking to the person, as they don't know what to say, is a prime example.

All the person suffering needs is a friendly face, maybe a chat and not made to feel like they are all alone.

Lets face it, one in three of the population will suffer some kind of mental illness during their lifetime.

Don't make yourself feel guilty about your mental illness as the Inspirational Quote says, remember to look at the word illness, and review its definition. We all need to treat ourselves with the same respect and concern as we would do someone suffering with cancer or pneumonia, for arguments sake.