Depression (major depression)

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• February 10, 2012 5:34 p.m.

  I don't share my bipolar diagnosis w/ anyone but my family and I still experience stigma at work and at school. My sister says I send out a vibe (I guess anyone that is hiding something becomes obvious- I do feel shame in being bipolar- it's not something I want to have and neither does anyone else). I also think Lithium has changed my facial features, especially my eyes, during the nearly 20 years that I've taken it.

  - somebody w/ MI

• February 3, 2012 12:54 a.m.

  thanks for sharing.

  - karen

• December 30, 2011 11:53 a.m.

  Is important to tell my bone doctor that I take Prozac? I am afraid I will be treated differently if I do tell. Will it make a difference if I don't tell him? I heard him say something about a psych patient. Am I a psych patient?

  - smilingjen

• December 4, 2011 3:27 p.m.

  Unfortunately, my experience of many Doctors in general medicine in the UK is that they still stigmatise their patients, often being very judgemental and not taking their concerns seriously. It is better not to tell them that you suffer from Depression.

  - Carin

• October 25, 2011 5:18 a.m.

  I respectfully disagree with the article. In my experience, the stigma associated with my condition has essentially remained the same (if not become worse) over the last 15 years. While I appreciated that DSM IV was intended to be helpful and a guide for diagnosis and research, it has in effect become a scaffold for discrimination. Once you are labelled, it basically means that employers and the medical community have a license to behave however they wish towards you, no matter how destructive, cruel and unjustified their behavior is. You cannot win under these situations: if you complain about the behavior, it is because of your "mental condition" i.e. you are just oppositional and defiant. If you complain, it just makes the situation worse and opens you up to punishment because you complained. I have no problem with my condition and I am healthy and well. The crushing, and at times overwhelming, problem is the behavior and reactions of others towards the label.

  - RC

• October 23, 2011 2:07 p.m.

  I am 54 years old now and have had my mental illness (bi-polar disorder) become severe two times in my life. The first was a tragedy where I lost my only daughter at birth. My opinion is that professionals in this field, unless they have had any severe mental illness issues themselves, will never understand the stigma. And many times when I have been hospitalized, the "professionals" have traumatized me more (diagnoses that I don't have and ignoring me due to prior actions when I was sick). If I had a physical illness, people would not detach from me like they do when my mental illness messes my brain chemistry off and I say or write things that I NEVER would otherwise.

  - Cathy

• September 11, 2011 4:13 p.m.

  I do think the stigma of mental illness has declined, however there are still many hurdles for those facing these diseases. It is very hurtful to be judged by one's illness, and in actually seeking the proper way to treat it. To be judged because you are on antidepressants is one of the unfortunate stigmas that remain. In what other disease sites is one labeled or judged for seeking the CORRECT treatment, such as medication or therapy? This is where mental illness is far behind.

  - BEH

• July 19, 2011 4:15 p.m.

  Its good that people are accepting the resources for stopping depression. Some people have trouble simply calling a therapist, so this is a good step.

  - Therapy Specialist

• July 1, 2011 5:11 p.m.

  I am a registered nurse who has had clinical depression most of my life. I do think that the stigma of mental illness has decreased over the last 27 years that I have practiced, but there is stilla long way to go. I find it offensive that I hear Dr's and Nurses say things like "she's Bipolar, but she's really nice" like these traits do not co exist normally. Or hear them discuss the medications someone takes as if they must be disabled because they take that particular medication instead of realizing that taking the medication is what is helping this person to remain a healthy productive member of society. When I speak up about statements like this, I'm treated like I'm stupid to make the comment. I think the stigma will not change until health care overall changes additude about mental illness. We can do bypass surgery on an 80 year old person and have it be covered by insurance in every major city in America on an emergency basis.. there's always a bed available. But people with mental illness in need of hospitalization often have to be transferred to a different facility and sometimes a different city to obtain the care they need despite presenting to an emergency room in a major hospital. There is a big disparity in arrangement of follow up care as well. I was referred to a provider that did not accept my insurance and had difficulty finding one that would... and I had good insurance! There are places that do not accept Medicaid despite disability due to Mental

  - Phyllis

• June 10, 2011 9:52 a.m.

  cont. to ela: write back & let us know how you both are doing

  - denise

• June 10, 2011 9:44 a.m.

  dear ela: i'm glad u wrote in & i'm sorry i didn't respond sooner, i'm not a professional just someone that has suffered from mental illness 4 almost 35 yrs. now, u r right 2 b concerned about your best friend, from what ur telling me, in my opinion she is suffering from depression, try 2 get her 2 see a reg. m.d. that way she won't think ur turning on her & a lot of people view mental illness as a sign of weakness, she may have a medical condition, alot of people that suffer from a thyroid condition r misdiagnosed as having a mental illness & put on anti-depressants-such a shame!! by going the way of the reg. m.d., it rules out any other medical condition that she may have & she may b more willing to go 2 the dr.?? (hopefully), if not, the only thing that u can do is what ur doing right now: be a good friend & be a good listener, it might take some time 4 her to realize that she needs some help, but hopefully-she'll come around, since she's a very health-consious person she may b open 2 taking some herbal supplements such as St. John's Wort (helps w. depression naturally), chamomile tea 4 anxiety & sleep, if u want u can do some research on this & many other questions that u have, if she is suffering from depression i'm not sure if just counseling will help her, may b u can offer 2 go to the dr. with her?? good luck to you, you're a good friend to be concerned, the more stress she's under the worse her condition may become, write back & let u

  - denise

• June 7, 2011 11:04 a.m.

  I Don't know what to do or where to go. I have a best friend for the last 7 years. I am so very concerned for her. I truely believe she has a mental illness, She's about to divorce her husband because anything he does wrong like buy the wrong kind of cerial, to her is a betrayal of his love. she's rejecting family and friends myself included. Everyone is betraying her in her thinking. Anyone who doesn't see or agree with things the way she does they are out of her life. she's been to about 5 diff marriage counselors and as soon as they try to see his perspective that's the last time she'll go because she'll say he minipulated the councelor the councelor's siding with him. She has to have control of everything. Her kids are concerned and her daughter is very close to the situation and I think is trying to protect her. I am just so worried about her daughter, all of the kids. her sons and husband in the past mentioned Bipolar and she is furious at any mention of this kind. But If I or anyone mentions illness she gets very angry and she will completely cut them out of her life. On a normal day she is a beautiful, classy, intelligent lady. But lately she's completely perinoid everyones against her. She's a health concious person so I don't know if she'd ever take meds if diagnosed. Please help me I don't know what to do and I want to help. How does anyone approach this?

  - Ela

• April 29, 2011 12:43 p.m.

  We had our 2 year old grandson removed from our home after 25 months due to things my husband told his doctors about his depression. I didn't report those things to our attorney ( working on legal cusdoty) because I didn't know I needed too and now it looks as if we will never get him back. Stigma is very real

  - Margaret

• April 17, 2011 6:40 a.m.

  I feel the stigma of my illness most painfully in my own home. My husband who has praised me for the progress I've made in tempering my mood swings lashes out at me during a fight that he'll "tell a custody judge about my lithium and then we'll see who gets the kids." I remind him I am not ashamed about my treatment. And I am proud of myself for taking the necessary steps to control my illness. But the stigma and threat remain.

  - jla

• April 14, 2011 11:26 a.m.

  I just read Margret's story posted March 2011. Regarding her son that she found dead. That is where I am right now. My son too has been diognosed with bipolar disorder, he is 17. All he wants to do is die. He's been hospitalized a number of times during the last three months. It's been a nightmare. I also have a daughter who is terrified, not of her brother but of the fact that she might come home and find her brother dead. He has a therapist and pysh. He lost his job from being honest with his manager about his sickness. He was fired! I'm a single mom and cannot watch him all day. I may be forced to instutionalize him for his safty. It's heartbreaking. This is a true sickness, the mind is increadible and works in mysterious ways. My son constantly here's voices in his head arguing and telling Him how to end his life. He said they told him that he's not allowed to tell us what there saying. I told him if there negative ignore them. Dr. said the voices are part of his disease and the medicine should soon help, I hope so before it's to late.

  - Worried

• April 10, 2011 8:02 a.m.

  I struggle a lot being a professional, educated person on the outside, but struggling with several anxiety disorders that are chronic. Although I don't talk about them in a business setting, they still can sometimes strongly affect my performance and my job longevity. I did talk once, and was out of a job soon after. I'll never make that mistake again! Like the writer said, I too believe the stigma is lessening, but is still there, and is still a problem. I went to a new doctor for meds about a year or so ago. "PTSD and what else?" he said. "For almost 20 years?" He immediately put himself on guard. I asked him why at the end of the appt, and he said, "Well, you know." I told him I didn't - he said, "People with PTSD just fly off the handle and attack people sometimes!" Really? I've never heard that, and that's never, ever happened to me - nor do I think it would. I told him that, but he didn't lessen his behavior or response. To this point, I'd never seen someone actually afraid of me - and it crushed me. And this was a doctor - a young one! I went to another doctor after that who responded not as drastically, but similarly. I felt ashamed and haven't been back. And yes, I still need meds. I moved to a rural area in Minnesota from somewhere else. I wonder if it's just the area I'm in. There's not even support groups here. I don't need much support, but it would be nice to have some, somewhere.

  - Hare

• April 5, 2011 11:57 p.m.

  The mentally ill fail to realize they can change, instead they expect everybody to treat them the same way they were treated at home. What people without a mental disorder fail to realize they too are in need of adjusting. This is something we all need to work on. It makes me very sad when I meet somebody and they expect to be treated a certain way. Then when I tell my life story and how I make progress everyday which is something I chose to do. I could easily live one way and be stuck in a rut and accept me or not for I am not going to change for anybody, I have a mental condition. There are far too many people expecting others to change for them, they have taking advantage of their mental condition and use it as a crutch. I was born in 1961 with a brain leaving me in a passive state where I depended on somebody to come get me moving, I had very little affection which was only shown towards animals. At age six after a near drowning a doctor told my mother your son is retarded and there isn't any type of therapy for his condition. In 2003 I shared my childhood life with a clinical psychologist with 29 years working traumatized people and confirmed my mental state as retarded. If, a person become set in deciding that all things have to work around their mental state they will then become fixed on a way of life which creates the stigma around them. The brain is very powerful when you know how to use the mind.

  - Rusty

• March 30, 2011 6:03 p.m.

  I do not think the stigma's towards mental health disorders has decreased in recent years. Mental illness is something most people still do not want to talk about. People with MI are still called names, and most of the people doing the name calling are the one's who don't know anything about MI. The public may now accept antidepressant use more, but I think that sometimes we are too quick to medicate and not look at the underlying factors.

  - Nancy

• March 26, 2011 12:43 p.m.

  Continued.... Unfortunately, I have learned all this first hand. I had a beautiful son, named Glen, who suffered from anxiety, depression, learning disabilities, and ADHD all his life. He was diagnosed bipolar as a young man. The last thing he wanted to admit was that he was mentally ill. I found him dead, laying across his bed, on July 2, 2010. Dead from doing a speed ball. He was only 23 years old. More than anything, Glen wanted a purpose in his life. He would often fall into hopelessness and could not see why he was ever born. Yet, if you see his memorial video on youtube the "Glen Alexander Story", you can see why I loved him so much. I can no longer help Glen, but I will spend the rest of my life trying to help others who struggle as he did.

  - Margaret

• March 26, 2011 12:41 p.m.

  The Stigma of Mental Illness starts with the words "Mental Illness" What is it that most people think, when they hear a person suffers from Mental Illness? Most people think that person must be crazy or nuts or dangerous in some way. Why not use the term "Chemical Imbalance" or "Neurological Disorder" and then go on to define the type(s) of chemical imbalance(s) or disorder(s) that person is dealing with. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, within any given year one out of every four American adults suffers from some type of mental disorder. This includes such things as; depression, anxiety attacks, anger, mood swings, stress, panic attacks, schizophrenia and etc. People who suffer with these disorders are often times very bright and almost always not of any danger to others. We need to start removing the stigma's of Mental Illness. We can start by getting rid of that term. By doing this people who suffer will be more apt to embrace their diagnosis and get the treatment they need. Young people especially would rather self medicate, than accept and define themselves as "mentally ill". I don't blame them! I would not want to tell people I was mentally ill or suffer from a mental illness either. The tragedy is: When they attempt to self medicate, they often become addicted to dangerous drugs. This only compounds their problem of obtaining a balance in their life.

  - Margaret

• March 10, 2011 2:05 p.m.

  "This could mean there's less of a stigma toward mental illness now." I doubt it, I lost all of my friends after my first psychiatry visit, psychosis itself means: Confusion/stupid/antiself and lack of social qualities - if that is not a dishonoured view on a human then I dont know.. Also, if you notice, at least in Norway, but I do believe it is so all over the world, mental and physical hospitals are placed always outside the center of the city they are in. Offcourse this was based probably on past designs that again was based on past stigmas but why is it so to this day? Why isnt there a reconstruction of this?

  - hoLkaPoLKa

• February 9, 2011 2:50 p.m.

  Think twice before -You- get involved with the mental health industry? The mental health industry talks about -Stigma- when everybody should be talking about inhuman expertimentation and pain and suffering and false hope and then -Suicide-? Since I worked for years at one of the top mental health rehabilitation facilities in northern new jersey? We only saw -Two- real success stories at real recovery out of thousands of stable clients? Stigma is used as a -Red Herring- by the mental health industry when the real problem is the -Ponzi Scheme- that has been going on for the last hundred years? Look up the history of the mental health industry and you will run from these supposed mental health professionals and the mental health foundations that help finance this pain and suffering and inhuman expertimentation and call it -Research-?

  - JOHNSPEAKS

• February 4, 2011 5:39 a.m.

  In reference to the stigma, why can't people grow up and face the music about the mental health situation here in the united states. Not only are we losing lives to this disease we are hiding from it why? When someone says oh my "Brian is schitzophrenic" the walls come unglued. All Brian would need is the right medication and community support to tackle his problem not what he will probably go through a life of pure hell. People with brain disorders are abused in our community and it really irritates me to see this go on. It is as if Brian has lost all human rights. Something needs to change. Quick.

  - Ronald

• December 14, 2010 10:28 p.m.

  Betty, I hope you will read my post even though my life recently became complicated. Please stick with your meds and talk to your doctor. I am working with my therapist on my problems as well as seeing my doctor.

  - MK

• December 14, 2010 10:23 p.m.

  My life had been going ok for a while but then I had a depressive episode, brought on by the death of my father, to whom I was very close. He died of cancer. I watched, horrified,over about 4 years as his health declined slowly. He just died a few weeks ago and my depression returned into my life. I am getting this under control quickly with a PRN (take as needed acording to doctor) prescription. I always follow the dosage directions but in the meantime, I accidentally strongly offended a long-time friend, who kicked me out of a certain social organization that I love. I had never fully discussed my health issues with him and he doesn't understand my recent depressive episode. I am so upset with my friend and really hurt! This episode has been one of my hardest to control, since I didn't see it coming due to a very busy year. This is because this year has been the worst year of my life!

  - MK