Labeling

By Gran13

Are stigma and discrimination the obstacles to a public discussion on mental illness?

Do you know that  having a mental illness is not a sign of weakness?

Mental illness does not mark you as a failure.

Mental illness in your family doesn’t reflect badly on you as a parent.

If you break a leg, people understand but, if your brain goes wrong, they become anxious.

Self advocacy is powerful as I manage to reach people who have experienced or who are experiencing something similar to what I lived through with mental illness. if I can change the  attitude of one person toward mental illness, I will not have lived in vain.

i had to learn to separate my son from his mental illness, but it was difficult.

Stigma is about disrespect. Stigma is about the negative use of labels. Stigma is about discrimination. Stigma is about social exclusion. Stigma makes some families hide their ill relative who has done nothing more than become ill.

Lets try and live without pretending, love without defending and speak without offending.