Task Me…

I’m so sporadic about posting on here I should probably give it up but then something happens and I just have to write about it so bare with me please as I step up onto my podium and get this out there. As always, you can stop right here and not read on but I’d love some comments.

I am taking a university level psychology course this year and we just completed a chapter on the stigma of mental illness complete with videos of interviews with those afflicted with various mental illnesses. I think it would be naive if any one of us did not confess to dismissing someone as “crazy” or “not all there” using the little swirling finger motion at the side of our head.

Why does this stigma continue on? The World Health Organization estimates that one in four of us will struggle with a mental illness  in our lifetime. That’s huge but will any of us admit to it or talk about it? Not likely. We are afraid of losing our jobs, of losing respect with friends and family, of being dismissed as crazy by those that don’t even know us. I always shudder at the missing person notices that appear in my community emphasizing the person has dealt with a mental illness in the past – a euphemism to  suicide – so don’t look too hard!

When does it stop? Anytime soon? Doubtful. My instructor cautioned that if any one of us in the course was affected by a mental illness that we should not discuss it on the discussion boards or bring it up in any way. So again, silence and denial in a forum that just might have some sympathy and respect for someone dealing with an mental illness. It may sound like I am judging my instructor but I understand where the warning comes from. You can’t control what some insensitive, uneducated dufus will say to someone who may be feeling a bit fragile and frustrated with those who have little understanding or empathy.

I work in mental health and I see the denial…”no one else in my family has ever had a mental illness” and a million other comments. When are people going to realize that a slight change in body chemistry can bring it on or that there is a genetic component to so many disorders? Please educate yourself and have a little empathy and understanding – it could be you or someone you love struggling in silence, feeling isolated and overwhelmed. How do you think we can change the negative image of mental illness?

It’s been some time since I posted on here and I wanted to explain in some small way. I was unlucky enough to attend two funerals over the last few months and there is nothing like a death to make you rethink your life. One of those deaths had a huge impact on me, in fact my heart aches to this very moment. I doubt it will leave me any time soon.

I am no stranger to losing a loved one too soon and I tend to carry that pain very close to the surface. I am amazed at how some people can bottle it up and go on – I wish I had more of that ability. I am trying this time around to not go off the deep end. The last time I lost someone I quit my job and went back to school full time to finish my degree. I can’t afford that this time but I feel the need to honour not only those that are gone but those that remain. If  I may borrow from Oprah, I need to live my best life and be present and available.

More often than I care to admit, I am distracted and focused on my own perceived problems that I lose that ability to connect with the people in my life. If I am being honest, I have also lost the ability to connect with myself and just have fun. I don’t even know what fun looks like anymore. When was the last time you played hooky and just did something for fun?