I would be hard pressed to tell you which was the most difficult part of picking up the pieces and going on. It may have been the acceptance of having a chronic mental disorder and coping with it. It may have been dealing with the stigma so rampant in being labeled "mentally ill" or it may have been recovering my self and sense of self-esteem.
When I was in hospital the first time, my best friend Mary gave birth to her third child. A baby girl, and after two boys there was much rejoicing. I missed her baby shower, and the birth, but had already crocheted a beautiful white layette, just waiting for the pink or blue ribbons and bought several "tiny" gifts for the new baby. Soon after my release from hospital, I completed the gift and wrapped it. Mary lived just a few doors away and I went, gift in hand, eager to see both her and the baby. She came to the door and held it open about a foot, accepted the gift, and to my surprise and dismay did not invite me in. I could see the fear in her eyes and turned and walked away. I never went back, nor did I hear from her again. I had my first experience with stigma. (it was far from being the last)
Stigma approaches from many quarters, ...not just personal ones like I have described here. Every day, every newspaper across the country has at least one article relating to the "mentally ill" and their instability or criminal behavior. Television, billboards and magazines point fingers at the mentally ill for everything from driving health care costs up to murder. One never sees a news story about a person who has made a positive achievement captioned "So and so is a Normal Person" but often one sees captions reading "So and so found Insane" or "So and so suffers from Mental Illness." No one stops to think that this is the minority of the millions of people with Mental Disorders, or that there is indeed a certain percentage of so called "normals" doing the same deeds and committing the same crimes.
Great strides have been made by Mental Health advocacy groups and individuals to educate the public and their peers about the true nature of Mental Illness of the fact that in many instances it can be treated and that, even though they carry the label, many people being treated for Mental Illness lead perfectly normal lives. Unfortunately, the press is able to reach far more individuals and their prejudice is quoted and believed by many. Each of us must do our part to seek understanding and acceptance for those with Mental Illness.
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