It’s funny how in society illness’s such as diabetes, asthma, cancer and other physical ailments are so easily accepted. When in comparison depression, anxiety, eating disorders and other mental illnesses are veered away from and stigmatized in a way that it feels like society as a whole believe that the sufferer has much to blame. I have lost count of the number of times I have had someone say to me “why don’t you just eat?” or “you shouldn’t feel guilty” or “just be happy”. But not even just the blunt comments, but the looks you receive or the way friends will avoid the topic all together. These beliefs and behaviours just leave the sufferers feeling ashamed and only enhances the symptoms experienced. I know I felt extremely ashamed of my illness. I would act as though everything was okay, in order to reduce the embarrassment I felt. When really, I needed help and support, instead I suffered in silence, and got very good at acting like there was nothing wrong.
I was talking to my psych about this the other day, when something struck that made so much sense… I was thinking about the cause of my eating disorder (with underlying anxiety, depression and other mental health issues) and I realised that these causes were very similar to those of any other more acceptable physical illness. Other illnesses are malfunctions of the human body. Let’s take diabetes for example, my understanding is diabetes (obviously depending on what type) is due to either genetic or dietary factors and is when the body is unable to produce insulin the way it is supposed to. And cancer, I know it’s a very touchy subject and people may be offended by this, so I apologize in advance, but cancer develops again, due to genetic and environmental factors. Yet when it comes to mental illness, it is the sufferers fault… They should not be the way they are… when really mental illnesses are just a malfunction of the human brain. This malfunction has occurred due to both genetic and environmental factors. And over time the brain connections and wires become so strong that the victim cannot control their thoughts. They have automatic ways of thinking which may be quite detrimental to their health and wellbeing. And although rationally they can understand that this way of thinking is unhelpful it takes A LOT of hard work and sometimes medication to control or change this.
But then thinking some more, maybe it is more just the ignorance of society, as with not having lived with a mental illness, they are very difficult to understand or get your head around. This makes me determined to be part of a movement to inform society. To give them the knowledge that I know of Mental Illness’s and hopefully shift the current stigma.
Anyway lots of rambling and not making too much sense so I will leave this here.
Just something to think about.
crossing.the.thin.line 