When struggling with severe mental illnesses or brain disorders, such as schizophrenia, there are times when our symptoms may not be under control and thereby become evident to some of the people we come across at such a difficult time. Often, due to the stigma of mental illnesses and brain disorders, we are met not with a calm and kind reaction but with fear and rejection. We come up against a total brick wall.
The pity of this reaction is that, even when relapsing, consumers of mental health do not exhibit all their symptoms all the time. In my experience, even during my worst relapses, there are times when I express myself, and I act reasonably and make plain that I know I am ill and that I need to see my doctors about it. I can interact with people in conversations that don’t involve talking about mental illnesses and brain disorders at all. Those who love me and help take care of me can interact with what is good in my behavior and use it to support me in getting treatment. Usually, this treatment involves more appointments than usual with my psychiatrist, who adjusts the dose of my medication, and sticking to my weekly consultations with my psychologist. The person who, instead of being kind and concerned like they would be if you had broken a leg, exercises the stigma of mental illness by flatly denying that anything you do can be sane may help to make your mental health worse. It’s important to distance yourself from their reaction.
Most importantly, when struggling with symptoms of mental illnesses and brain disorders, the sense of self-worth can be shallow. If we let those exercising stigma add to that negativity, it can be harmful and dangerous for our health. Every consumer of mental health needs to remember that they are not their mental illness or brain disorder and that, even when struggling, they do many good things and express themselves for at least part of the time perfectly reasonably. Building on that positive fact with the aid of appropriate treatment is the territory to frequent, not the worry about what others think.