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Mental Health Awareness Week, Oct 2-8
October 3, 2011 at 11:39 pm
I don't ordinarily post these kinds of things, but this is a subject that personally touches me very deeply. I'm not pimping for donations, but I'm certainly not going to discourage it.
Mental Illness affects one in four families in the USA, oftentimes with profound results - and sometimes tragic ones. Despite advances over the years, a lot of misinformation and stigma surrounds the issue.
As someone who has been afflicted with mental illness for nearly my entire life (Type 1 bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and general anxiety disorder), I have personally experienced the stigma.
Please take a minute to visit NAMI's website (National Alliance on Mental Illness), and perhaps learn a thing or two.
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RE: Mental Health Awareness Week, Oct 2-8
October 4, 2011 at 12:16 am
I used to work closely with NAMI at my previous job. They work tirelessly to help and advocate for people with mental health disorders.
My mom is diagnosed with borderline personality disorder and manic depression. My sister is undiagnosed, but my family has long suspected that she has bipolar disorder.I used to work at an agency that advocated and reported to NAMI for those with mental disorders. They are wonderful.
A subject near and dear to me, thanks for bringing it to light.
Nothing is your own except the few cubic centimeters inside your skull. - George Orwell
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RE: Mental Health Awareness Week, Oct 2-8
October 4, 2011 at 12:37 am
Thanks for stickying this, Mor!
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RE: Mental Health Awareness Week, Oct 2-8
October 4, 2011 at 1:35 am
I'm glad you posted this. Thanks.
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RE: Mental Health Awareness Week, Oct 2-8
October 4, 2011 at 1:41 am
I hadn't even realized it, but it seems fitting that this is the week I finally drag my butt into a local clinic for a diagnosis. Thanks for the info! 
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RE: Mental Health Awareness Week, Oct 2-8
October 4, 2011 at 1:44 am
thankyou for making me aware that I am nutz
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RE: Mental Health Awareness Week, Oct 2-8
October 4, 2011 at 3:20 am
(October 4, 2011 at 1:44 am)reverendjeremiah Wrote: thankyou for making me aware that I am nutz
You're always the last to know.
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RE: Mental Health Awareness Week, Oct 2-8
October 4, 2011 at 5:48 am
Hopefully one day mental health issues will lose that stigma which I believe is a big influence on the fact that many of these illnesses go undiagnosed.
Even if the open windows of science at first make us shiver after the cozy indoor warmth of traditional humanizing myths, in the end the fresh air brings vigor, and the great spaces have a splendor of their own - Bertrand Russell
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RE: Mental Health Awareness Week, Oct 2-8
October 4, 2011 at 7:00 am
I for one give value to this, as I suffered alot of anxiety disorders after I quit drugs, and I appreciate the help these people can get.
To be honest, I think everyone needs mental help, some more than others, but there is this stigma, that people that need therapy are 'crazy'. Sometimes being heard by an unbiased technician is just enough.
Good post Blasphemer 
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RE: Mental Health Awareness Week, Oct 2-8
October 4, 2011 at 7:26 am
Yup. It's really hard to admit that you need help, I knew for a long while that I could benefit from a professional therapist, but didn't seek help. It was a relief when I finally did and I have never felt better. I am still crazy to boot, but nowadays I'm only in a good way
When I was young, there was a god with infinite power protecting me. Is there anyone else who felt that way? And was sure about it? but the first time I fell in love, I was thrown down - or maybe I broke free - and I bade farewell to God and became human. Now I don't have God's protection, and I walk on the ground without wings, but I don't regret this hardship. I want to live as a person. -Arina Tanemura
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