Mental Illness Is Real

Bipolar is real, Depression is real, Schizophrenia is real, Mental Illness is real! It's such a shame that those of us living with a mental illness are made to feel as if our illness isn't real, as if it doesn't matter. There are no casseroles for the family when someone is struggling with a mental illness, so many less people say "let me know if there's anything you need" than would if it were to someone with a physical illness, many people just turn a blind eye, turn the other way as if nothing is happening, as if we're not sick and we don't need help. The problem with that is, we ARE sick and we DO need help. We need love and we need support in the same way someone with cancer needs love and support. Mental illness is seen as the invisible illness which makes those of us suffering with mental illness feel like the invisible people.

Would you feel cared about by someone who didn't show you care and compassion while you were undergoing chemo therapy? Would you feel loved by someone who turned their back on you while you were in the hospital after having a stroke? Would you feel like you mattered to someone who didn't take the time to recognize and acknowledge the pain you experience as a result of your MS?

I'm willing to bet the answer to those questions is no, across the board. So I ask you the following questions.

Why should those of us living with a mental illness feel cared about by people who don't show us care and compassion when we most need it? Why should we feel loved by people who turn their backs when we're sick and crying out for help? Why should we feel like we matter to those who don't take the time to recognize and acknowledge, even if they can't understand, the pain and daily struggle we deal with as a result of our illness? Why is our invisible illness less important than the physical, visible illnesses of others? Why are we so often forced to suffer alone or with less support than those dealing with a physical illness?

If you're someone who does this to a friend or family, please realize how much you're hurting them. If you're someone that has seen other people do this to a friend or family member, please stand up for them. If you have a mental illness and are experiencing this or have experienced this like I have, I'm sorry. I'm not going to sugarcoat it. It sucks. It hurts. It's the last thing we need when we're already drowning in our mental illness. Compassion is a beautiful thing, compassion for all.

There is nothing fake about what we experience in our head every day. I know it can't be seen, but it's there and at times it can be complete misery. Mental illness can be deadly. In fact, suicides encompass a large number of deaths in the United States. Imagine if your brain was working against you so much that death seemed like the best option, the only option, the only way out. That is not fake, that is real, incredibly real. Count yourself as being lucky if you've never felt that way but don't discount the pain and suffering of the person that has felt that way. There is nothing fun about mental illness. It has destroyed main lives because it is real and it is unforgiving. Just because you can't see it in an x-ray, in a blood test, as a rash on my arm, or a fever on the thermometer doesn't make it any less real than cancer or diabetes or other physical illnesses.