Are you mad?
Kitty Vaughan looks at our sterotypical views of mental illness
I
magine being isolated, feeling alone and scared. That's how some mentally ill people can feel and I bet you know some, it’s a wonder this type of illness is not discussed more. Let's face it people tend to react weirdly about mental illnesses, as if it were contagious.
There are some very common misconceptions about mental illness, just to clarify here are some facts:
* Mental illness can affect people of all ages and walks of life as it can be triggered by physical, social, environmental and/or genetic factors.
* People with mental illness are not more likely to be violent and are often able to lead a normal life.
* Recovery means different things to different people and no two individual journeys of recovery will be the same. Regardless of symptoms or past experiences, people with mental health problems should be given every opportunity to, and can, lead fulfilling and satisfying lives.
* Actor Stephen Fry, comedian Paul Merton, chat show host Trisha Goddard, astronaut Buzz Aldrin and film director Francis Ford Coppola all have experience of mental illness.
* People with bipolar disorder aren’t “one or the other” all the time. * You are more likely to be assaulted by a drunk than somebody who is mentally ill yet we don’t fear those that binge drink.
* Not all mental illnesses are extreme like that of Schizophrenia and Schizophrenia is not always the 'split personality' persona people assume, sufferers often have hallucinations/delusions some of which are terrifying.
* According to netdoctor.co.uk "Over a lifetime you have a one in five chance of having an episode of depression."
Some mental illnesses are more widespread than commonly believed and could easily affect you or someone close to you. As seen above high profile figures have battled with it and it did not ruin their lives. Many people with a mental illness will make a full recovery with the right medical attention and care.
I believe facts about mental illness should be common knowledge and we all need to do more to try to understand it. Help to create a more understanding society. Challenge stereotypes. Don't ignore. Just try and understand.(can we have this line in BOLD please)
Insite editor Cat spoke to clinical psychologist and author of ‘They F**k You Up’ Oliver James who had something to say on the subject of Britain’s mental health: ‘Whilst 23% of british people suffered a mental illness in the last twelve months – twice as many as the average in mainland europe – for everyone who qualifies for this diagnosis there is at least one more on the verge thereof.
What you have to realize is that the majority of people will at some point in their life feel seriously depressed or anxious or flaky. Alas, we live in a mad society, so it is no surprise that so many of us often feel mad.’
An article by Oliver James: www.guardian.co.uk/money/2008/oct/15/consumeraffairs-economy
Visit Oliver’s website www.selfishcapitalist.com to find out more about what he does.
