Today is Bell Let’s Talk day. The campaign urges us to talk about mental illness with the goal of improving the lot of individuals with mental illness. The reason’s are simple:
Bell Let's Talk spokesperson, Michel Mpambara, president of the Douglas Institute Foundation, Jane Lalonde, and yours truly at an event announcing Bell's major donation to the Douglas Brain Bank.
- One in five of us will suffer from a mental illness at some point in our lives. This of course doesn’t mean we will be completely debilitated (like physical illness, some stop us in our tracks while others are more manageable), but it does mean our lives will be impacted in a SIGNIFICANT way. If we include problems that are a little more self-contained (and therefore well-hidden) such as specific phobias (fear of public speaking, flying, dentists, etc), a much higher percentage of us are affected.
- Mental illnesses can rule our lives. Some are short-lived and some are relatively easy to treat, but many are chronic and not everyone responds to treatment. Any physical illness that had such an impact on so many lives would certainly get more attention. Mental illness remains the neglected child of research funding.
- Many people who could benefit from treatment do not seek help. It is estimated that up to 50% of people who suffer from mental illness do not seek help. This number – even if it is likely dropping – remains ridiculously high. No matter what your attitude is about healthcare, it is hard to imagine any more than a small percentage of people resisting treatment for any other ailment.
- Stigma is an unnecessary burden. If I have an abscess in my tooth I will suffer plenty. Why would I have to add a large dose of shame to that? I don’t choose what happens to my tooth, or my skin, or my bones, or any other part of my body. Why should I be judged over how my brain is affected?
- The most important factor in acceptance is desegregation. The more we interact with others, the more we realize that people are not so different from each other. The first thing that happens when we share our experience of mental illness struggles with others is that we get inundated with ‘Me too’ stories. It is heartwarming to know we are not alone but it is also disturbing to know that so many people said nothing for so long until we opened a door for them. Campaigns like Bell Let’s Talk opens such doors.
Bravo to Bell, bravo to Clara Hughes and everyone else involved in the campaign, and bravo to all of you who share your stories.
Tagged as Clare HughesF, stigma, the stigma of mental illness.
Posted in Mental health.
Posted on 08 Feb 2012
On Feb 9th 2012 at 21:46
and Bravo to you Dr.Z, for your tireless efforts to get the word out in your own unique ways. Speaking from personal experience, if a good friend had not recognized the downward spiral I was in many years ago and had not shared her experience with me and encouraged me to get help, I can’t imagine how my life, along with my kid’s lives, would have been. Pharmaceuticals helped, but weren’t enough, I began to see a therapist with my friend’s steady encouragement and slowly began to see the light at the end of the tunnel and with each visit the light became brighter. Over the years I’ve experienced myself going back to that dark place but have managed to see the signs and return to therapy for guidance to get back on track or relied on family and a small circle of understanding friends that I trusted enough to open up to, who did not judge me in any way, was able to get back on track. I tuned into a t.v. special last night with Clara Hughes and a few more sport figures who shared their story and my heart went out to them as I knew exactly what they had experienced and the common thread amongst them all seemed to be overcoming the shame and opening up about their struggles and once they opened up, they were able to get much needed help. I commend you and awareness campaigns such as this one that educate, through personal stories, so people that are struggling can relate and hopefully realize that they too can take steps to manage or overcome this illness…that there is help out there and you are not alone. Keep up the great work!
On Feb 10th 2012 at 21:47
Well said! Why is it OK to share with friends, family and colleagues that one has MS or a brain tumour, but not that one has bipolar disorder or depression? To recover, we need support from our loved ones and entourage. This support is well-known for recovery from non-mental illness. Perhaps if we dropped “mental” and use “brain” illsness, tigma would disappear.