Hello everybody!! How are you today, I hope you’re having a lovely day. I actually had a bit of a difficult weekend and it’s what inspired me to write this post for you today! It’s also mental health awareness month so every Monday this month I will be posting a blog about my mental health experience. The reason I had such a difficult weekend was because I experienced the stigma and discrimination that surrounds mental illness first hand. I heard things that some people from my uni course, which I’ve taken a year out of, have been saying about why I’m not there right now. The rumours range from ‘she’s just done really badly and wanted an excuse to get out of the year’ to ‘she’s clearly just weird.’ Just to clarify: neither of these are true!! Well I’m maybe a little weird…but weird people are always the best ones! Another thing I heard which astounded me is how people just dismissed my mental illness, comparing my depression to when they ‘have a down day’ or my anxiety to ‘being a bit nervous.’ Trust me, I wish it was just that!!
I have to be honest and say that these things really did upset me, especially because they were said by people I considered friends. Then, the more I thought about it, the less angry I became and realised that actually, they’re only saying this because they don’t understand. And why would they?! If they, or anyone close to them hasn’t been through it you can’t expect them to understand. So today, I’m going to talk to you about my personal experience with mental illness! I saw a few people have done something similar on yooutube/other blogs and I will be using some of those questions but I’m also going to make up a few of my own. I hope this gives you a little glimpse into what it’s like to have a mental illness if you’ve never experienced it or assures you you’re not alone if you have. Let’s get into it!!
- What mental illness do you have? – I have depression, anxiety and OCD. Both the depression and the OCD come from my anxiety, anxiety is like the central one!
- When were you diagnosed? – I was originally diagnosed with depression in April last year, it wasn’t until September when I was diagnosed with Anxiety even though that is the cause of my depression. I actually believe that I’ve probably had it for much longer than this but it was only last April when I felt it really took over my life. I was only diagnosed with OCD in January of this year, the list just keeps getting longer!
- Who knows about it? – Most people I know are aware of it because I don’t think it’s anything to be ashamed of. I know some people might find it very difficult to tell lots of people but I just wanted to be upfront with it. Face your demons and all that!
- Do you receive treatment for it? – I take medication every day, 40mg of Citalopram and I see a therapist twice a week. The therapy I do is mainly CBT based, where I kind of try and retrain my brain and thought process. It’s a lot harder than it sounds!
- Has your mental illness stopped you from doing anything? – My mental illness has stopped me from doing lots of things, for example, I’ve had to drop out of uni, I often can’t see my friends and I struggle going out in public. I’m working on changing all of these things though and I’m so excited to be able to do normal stuff like go to the cinema again!
- Is there anything in particular that has helped you? – Definitely the support of my friends and family, they’ve always been and are still incredible. I can’t thank them enough! I think having that support network in place has been invaluable. I also think it helped me to read other blogs and watch youtube videos from other people who have the same illness as me as it made me feel like I wasn’t the only one in the world feeling this and like I wasn’t just being stupid!
- Can you describe what it feels like to have your mental illness? – This is a really tricky question as really, it’s impossible to describe. Whenever someone asks me this though the first thing that always pops into my head is a song by the Beatles called A Day In The Life. This song starts off a little down, keeps you a bit on edge and is a little mellow, which is kind of how I feel all the time. Then all of a sudden it descends into chaos, this reminds me of when I get one thought stuck in my head that won’t go away and escalates into a panic attack. I don’t know if that makes any sense at all but that’s what I always think of! This is a link to the song – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usNsCeOV4GM
- What is a common misconception about your mental illness? – The ones I hear most things like: ‘depression is just like having a bit of a bad day’, that ‘anxiety is just like being a bit nervous for a test’ and ‘OCD is just when you like things a bit neat right?’ None of these are true, trust me I wish they were because my life would be a lot easier!
- What do you find the most difficult to deal with? -For me the most difficult bit feeling isolated from your friends, your family, and sometimes even the rest of the world. You have to remember though that you’re not alone in this, lots of people have the same kind of thing and you’ll be able to go out and hang out with your friends and family again soon!
- Do you have anything else you’d like to say? – I would like to say to anyone who has a mental illness, you have nothing to be ashamed of, what you’re thinking is not ‘silly’ or stupid’. That you are not alone, there are always people out there to talk to and you do not have to go through this on your own. That one day this will all be over, you’dd be you again and I hope you get well soon! To anyone who has friends/family members with mental illness the best thing you can do is just be there for them. It will mean the world to them. To anyone who thinks it’s ‘not a real thing’, watch someone have a panic attack and then tell me it’s not real!
So I really hope that you found this post interesting and that maybe it helped you understand a little better what it’s like to live with a mental illness. If you have any questions at all, leave them in the comments below or feel free to email them to me, no question is too silly or too personal! I would like to tag anybody who reads this and has a mental illness, you’re all tagged! If you want to, I would love it if you would answer these questions on your blog! If you do use this tag please let me know so I can give it a read 🙂 It would also be really cool if any of you who doesn’t have a mental illness came up with your own version of this tag where you answered questions about your understanding of mental illness. Thank you so much for reading, as always it means so much to me and I can’t wait to hear your answers!!Lots of love,
It’s annoying that people don’t understand and probably won’t understand because they can’t feel what we feel, I envy them I’m honest. I hope everything goes okay with uni and don’t listen to what people say, carry on doing you
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yeah I know what you mean, but at the same time I would never wish this upon anyone! Thank you so much, ‘be yourself, everyone else is taken’!, I’ll do my best! xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
This is honestly so amazing! ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you so much! xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s fine! ❤
LikeLike
This is such a good post. You’re so right about the misconceptions, people not understanding is so frustrating.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Aww thank you!! It is really frustrating at times but hopefully the more people become aware the more they’ll understand 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
lovely post, even if it is about people just not getting “it” – love the misconceptions. I hate it when people say they’ve been “depressed” all day when really they just had a low day. which is of course completely normal.
Sorry to hear you dropped out of uni. i found uni tough and i found out that people who i classes as friends also just didnt get me. i think people thought i was a bit weird too. i’ll take weird though 🙂 Just take it easy, take each day as it comes xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
Aww thank you! I know but I just don’t think they understand what that means for some people. It’s a shame but hopefully soon I’ll be in a place where I can go back 🙂 All the best people are a bit weird though! Thank you so much for the support 🙂 xx
LikeLike
The cartoons here are so perfect. I’ve seen most of them before but they’re so meaningful & accurate. I’m a nurse but I see/hear all kinds of misinformed behaviors/statements regarding mental illness all the time, even from medical professionals. It’s a hard stigma to erase but I think one of the first steps is those of us who do have mental illnesses being open & honest about them. Sometimes we’ll get “burned” but sometimes we’ll also open someone else’s mind to understanding our issues & that makes it worth the risk.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I know, they’re great. Plus it’s always nice when you can add a little humour into such a tough subject 🙂 I couldn’t agree more, thank you so much for your support and I’m looking forward to reading more of your stuff 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Sharing your story is so important! Such things truly help to end the stigma. Keep on fighting 🙂
Best,
Giulia x
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you so much! x
LikeLiked by 1 person
This was very well written! May have to add this tag to my ‘to write list’! It is very frustrating that a lot of people don’t understand, but like you said without experience it is a topic that can be quite daunting to even begin to try and understand. I strongly believe that there needs to be a change and that we need to educate children about it to give them more of an understanding. Like you’ve done with this tag, sharing experiences is often the best way to help others understand! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you! I completely agree with you, 1 in 4 people will suffer from mental illness at some point, it’s crazy to me that there’s still a stigma! Thank you so much, looking forward to reading more stuff from you! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
This is a great concept, and really gives someone…like me that doesn’t know anything about you a quick summary of you. I am going to do this as well. I just went through a purging process where I nuked a bunch of people on my FB. I have WordPress automatically post up onto FB when I publish it. I didn’t have a ton to begin with because I believe in only having people on there I actually know or that socialize with me…that’s the point right? So now I’m down to 80 people that I feel interact with me and don’t neglect me because of what I decided to do…which was not hide or keep silent, but to share my story. Believe me, there was a lot of friends and family that had a wake up call on that one…nobody knew. This is a good post though, I’m going to try out this concept. You have a good blog, and I’ll be following it now…good stuff, stay positive.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thank you so much 🙂 I’m looking forward to reading it! I totally agree with you, I actually don’t even use it so much any more, only really to stay in touch with people who live far away. I think it’s truly amazing that you are sharing your story! It’s so tempting to keep it a secret but speaking out about it can really help and as you say, anyone who’s worth interacting with won’t think any differently of you. Thank you so much!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love this post. I may have to pinch those questions and answer them myself on my blog. I think it’s amazing when people speak so openly about their experiences with mental illness. More people should do it. X
LikeLiked by 1 person
I would love it if you did, I can’t wait to read it! It’s difficult and I wouldn’t want anyone who didn’t feel comfortable doing it but for me, if it changes just one persons mind about mental illness it’s worth it 🙂 x
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve done this tag! Great questions thanks for sharing! Give mine a read! XX
LikeLiked by 2 people
Awesome, I definitely will! Thank you 🙂 xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
I suffer from anxiety, specifically generalized anxiety disorder as well, and I connected with so much you said here. I think it is difficult sometimes for others to understand what we are going through. I think it is people like you who talk about it openly who can break barriers and stereotypes about people with mental illness. We are more similar than we think. Take care.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you so much for your lovely comment! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
This is a great post!!!! It’s not easy but your strength is palpable in your post!!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you so much! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank YOU for putting yourself out there – I know that it is so hard!!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hello! I just stumbled upon your blog and I am so glad I did! I love how you compare mental health to physical health because it is such a clear and great example to those who cannot understand. My blog is about mental health as well, so i absolutely love meeting people joining in the fight, but also speaking about it. Your strength is evident in this ❤ Keep fighting the good fight, and feel free to check out my blog as well! Much love xo
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you so much! It really is a great example of how differently it’s treated too. I can’t wait to read it! Thank you for the lovely comment 🙂 x
LikeLiked by 1 person
An excellent post, written with honesty and from your heart.
Depression and anxiety are often devalued by people who haven’t really experienced what a major depressive period or anxious response are like.
I’ve had major depression since a child, and at some point (at least in teens) bipolar 2 tho not diagnosed until 5 years ago.
A support network is one of the most important things when you have mental health issues. It’s crucial. Mental health issues, as you show, can be isolating and having people to talk with, people who will encourage you is so important.
Well done, and good luck with your mental health issues.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thank you so much, that’s such a lovely thing to say 🙂 I’m sorry to hear you’ve had a bit of a rough time and I wish you all the best. I completely agree with you, I believe it really is what is getting me through it. Thank you so much, and you too!
LikeLike
Great post,
I grew up with mental illness being the norm, my mum has bi polar. It is a very destructive illness for both the sufferer and the family and to be honest, we have all suffered. But it can be fantastic fun to live with someone who sometimes sees the world slightly differently and although my mum can get very ill, we have had some amazing times, also some desperate ones. The major problem being the concept and attitudes of others.
Sadly my daughter struggles with depression and anxiety, some days, I know, she fights even to get up! But she is at uni and is managing to stay on track with her course, although I know it is an uphill battle. She may not agree but she is so strong, probably stronger than most. In my experience, to live with and cope everyday with mental illness makes sufferers the strongest people.
I really hope that you find your way through this and don’t let other people’s attitudes to an illness that quite frankly they are ignorant of, keep you from living! You have made the first step by posting this blog. Good for you. I wish you all the luck and send all my best wishes.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m sorry to hear that it’s had such a big impact on your life but it sounds like you’re dealing with it and fighting it every step of the way! It’s such a shame people still have such a negative view on mental illness, but hopefully so many people talking about it can help that 🙂 I send all the best wishes to you and your family, your daughter really does sound like and incredibly strong individual. Thank you much for reading and taking the time to comment!
LikeLike
Here’s my tag post as promised 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for this. I have pretty much already answered the questions in my blog by talking about my background, but I may well do a concise one by answering these questions.
The Woodland Yeti.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s great, I’ll make sure I give your blog a read!
LikeLike
Here you go, here’s mine https://storiesfromcemeteries.wordpress.com/2016/05/03/mental-health-tag/
I will regret this in the morning….
xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
I truly hope you don’t and I especially hope you didn’t feel forced into posting anything! I personally loved your post and think you have every reason to be proud of it 🙂 xx
LikeLike
Good work, and thanks for the link as well as checking out my own stuff on the Uprooting Anxiety blog 🙂
I’ve had similar troubles with depression and anxiety, which I’ve come to understand are much more closely linked than I previously appreciated. I’ll probably be missing doing the MHT post myself – each question could easily generate enough content for a post each! – but definitely food for thought and thanks for sharing.
Keep at it, and keep that positive momentum going!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you and no problem, I’ve enjoyed reading your blog very much! Not a problem, thank you for reading and the support anyway 🙂
LikeLike
Excellent post. We need more people to talk about mental illness until the stigma goes away. I have lived with both depression and anxiety. I was actually diagnosed with depression at an early age (13 years old) and didn’t find out I had anxiety until I had my first panic attack in my early 20s and had to go to the hospital because I thought I was having a heart attack.
Unfortunately, I have yet to find a pill for depression that works for me. Zoloft made me feel like a zombie, Wellbutrin just made me speedy and I think made my anxiety worse. I take 0.5 mg of Ativan for my anxiety when I feel it starting up.
My boyfriend, family and friends all know about it. My mother is bipolar and is fairly understanding about mental illness since she’s had to deal with it herself and my best friend also has depression and anxiety. I’m very careful about sharing my mental illness with because a lot of people make shitty comments or plain misunderstand what it’s like. No, I can’t simply “cheer up” or “think positively” when I’m depressed. No, I can’t “just relax” when I have anxiety. Mental illnesses are also physical illnesses. When I’m depressed, my whole body feels heavy and it prevents me from wanting to have contact with the outside world. Even something simple and normally enjoyable, like going to the grocery store (I like to cook) is something I have to psych myself up for if I can even make it out the door. I once heard anxiety described as “the indescribable fear of nothing.” I think that is the perfect description. When I’m anxious, my breathing becomes shorter and thoughts are full-throttle. I start worrying about getting heart attacks, seizures, dying (even if my doctor told me I was super healthy that week), and getting into car accidents. Even though I know rationally that none of that stuff is likely to happen, when my anxiety brain takes over, it’s almost impossible to stop without Ativan.
I find the most difficult thing about mental illness is that I can’t just call into work and say “I have depression today, won’t be able to make it” like I could with stomach flu or a cold. I would love for us to evolve to the point where you could just say you were having an anxiety day or depression day without people treating you like you were some kind of lunatic or feeling sorry for you. I still have a great life (most days) even with my illnesses. Some people have tried to make me feel like I’m playing the victim card, which is really shitty. I know those same people wouldn’t say that about people with cancer or lupus. They would refer to them as survivors and that’s they way I see my fellow brothers and sisters with anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, etc. We are survivors.
I hope my comment provided at least a little insight…haha. I hope you keep writing about this. We need more people speaking with passion and honesty about mental illness!!
Hugs from Austin!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you so much! Panic attacks can be so vicious, I ended up in hospital after my first one too because I just couldn’t breathe and passed out.
I’m still searching for one too, I can’t take beta blockers because of other medication I’m on and none of the others seem to work and most make it worse! I hope you find one that works for you if that’s what you’d like 🙂
I’m sorry to hear about the bias you’ve faced, I truly hope that one day you won’t have to fear being misunderstood and people will take mental illness for what it is – illness. I completely agree, I have so many side effects that are physical it baffles me how people can still try and say it’s not ‘a real illness.’ That is a brilliant description actually!
Yeah, it’s awful when people have those kind of misconceptions and actually sometimes it can be really upsetting. You are so right, why can’t we be seen the same way?
It really did, thank you so much for answering the questions! Means so much that you took the time. I will definitely do my best and I can’t wait to read more of your blog posts also! 🙂 xx
LikeLike
The meds are all about suppression. To come to some sort of balance with it, you need to overcome it by confronting it.
It’s a tough road to walk, but it can be done. I hope you find the strength to realise the cure isn’t meds, but you yourself 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I LOVE this post! I can definitely relate with a lot of what you wrote. I’m so sorry that you go through this, I know how difficult it is. If you ever need to talk, let me know! I will be participating in this tag!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Aww thank you so much!! Same goes for you 🙂 Can’t wait to read it!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Reblogged this on Getting Through Anxiety and commented:
Becca from Becca Does Life Things talks about her anxiety and the stigma that surrounds mental illness and mental health issues. Please visit her great blog! I will be participating in this tag.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thank you so much for the support, really means so much to me!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’re welcome. 🙂 ❤
LikeLike
This is so great!! I may have to answers these questions in a post on my blog soon!! I am thankfully free of stigma for the most part. But I’m very vocal and usually don’t let people have their opinion. And I have in many ways conquered the art of putting people in their place without making them mad in the process. Sorry someone was unkind that’s not fair and it just makes dealing daily harder!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you so much! I’m so glad you’re mainly stigma free, you’re probably one of the only people who’s said that in their posts which is really sad. Haha good for you! Thanks for the comment!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Reblogged this on home and loving it and commented:
This is an amazing post talking about mental illness and the stigma that goes along with it. We have to remember, it’s nothing to be ashamed of!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you so much for the support!
LikeLiked by 1 person
You are so welcome!
LikeLike
LikeLike
Life on the Borderline… – Living with Borderline Personality Disorder
https://lifeontheborderlineblog.wordpress.com/
Thank you Becca for this brilliant post and idea – hopefully I have done what you have asked correctly. Take a look & let me know xx
LikeLiked by 2 people
Such a wonderful tag! Thank you for writing it up. Sorry you had to deal with people’s naïveté. Continue being strong and continue educating those who do not understand ☺️.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for reading it and for the support!
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’re welcome ☺️
LikeLike
I just created a post with answering the questions! thanks for sharing!
LikeLiked by 1 person
You are right–those comments from your friends are not meant to be cruel but really do come from a complete misunderstanding of the difference between being nervous and anxiety, feeling discouraged and being depressed.
One thing I can say is that as you get older, more people understand. By the time they are in their 40s, either people have experienced some depression or anxiety themselves or someone close to them has. So I find I have a few friends I can mention it to that will accept it and not just encourage me to “cheer up and look on the bright side.” On the other hand, let’s be honest, I do not talk about it at the workplace. I feel like people would see me as less intelligent and less competent if I were public about the severity of my depression. I don’t know, maybe I could handle talking about it AFTER a severe episode, when I am feeling stronger. But not in the middle of it; then all their opinions just become one more challenging thing to deal with.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I agree, and why would they understand if they’re never experienced or heard about someone who’s experienced it? I’m glad to head that you have some friends you can talk to about it. I agree and you should never feel like you have to explain yourself if you don’t want to either, as you say it can make things even worse. Hopefully one say though whenever someone wants to be open about their mental illness no one will judge them/discriminate against them!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I said that I’d do it, and I have! 😉
The Woodland Yeti
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for your comment on my blog post and for the link here. I’ve tried to answer those 10 questions as best I can (it took a while!) 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
When I saw the bit at the end that you’ve tagged peeps, I got so excited and fist pumped the air XD I am soooo doing this tag, it’s awesome and YOU are awesome and thank you for sharing your story and giving us a chance to understand you and what you go through better ❤ You are awesomeness in a bottle! ^^ (Speaking of, if you put on your creative hat, what would be inside that bottle with you and why? I'm imagining some sand, a little boat, etc.)
Any who, lovely post. I really like your style of both writing and your aesthetic on this blog. =)
What type of OCD do you deal with? It's interesting to come across someone whose anxiety stemmed their depression too :O
Keep on trekking!! Feel free to message me if you ever need a hand or a friend. ❤ (It'd be harder to give you my hand though since there's a computer in our way)
LikeLike
I’m so glad you want to do it, can’t wait to read your answers! Aww thank you so much! 🙂 Oooh good choice, I think I’d go more along the line of some trees and a tipi!
My OCD mainly focuses around me doing something really silly and accidentally hurting someone but I also have other symptoms such as numbers, order and so on. Honestly, sometimes I feel like my brain can obsess over anything!!
Same goes to you, and a virtual hand is better than no hand! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s fantastic! It sounds like a lovely drawing idea too :O
Ohhhhh’s I see, I see. Unless you’ve already answered this, how long have you had the OCD for?
That’s true!
LikeLike