Stigma

Many people with mental illness feel lonely and isolated.  Their journey through life can be filled with adversity and mental turmoil.  For others, their symptoms are more easily dealt with through medications and/or therapy, and they have a very good quality of life.  It all depends upon the individual.  One thing they have in common though, is the stigma surrounding mental illness.

Stigma against people with mental illness hurts them. It can make them worse. It can even make people take their own lives. It is essentially a form of bullying based upon a person’s ignorance or lack of understanding and empathy. 

Mentally ill people should not feel ashamed of themselves or their illness any more than anyone else with a physical illness. DON’T do it!  Don’t stigmatise. And if you hear of someone stigmatising, try to educate them – please.

The kindest thing you can do for anyone with mental illness is try to understand the person’s illness. Try to create empathy for that person. It’s not about sympathy; it’s about empathy – really trying to understand things from the other’s point of view. I have written articles on my website about how you can help stop stigma if you’d like to take a look sometime.

There is one big thing you can do if you have a mental illness… Share your story to help others’ understanding of mental illness.

Social networking and personal blogs are a valid addition to the world of mental illness and mental health.  Not only do professionals share their knowledge, but sufferers and families of sufferers are sharing more and more the stories of their journeys through mental illness.  This not only brings the subject out in the open more, it helps people understand this often misunderstood area of illnesses. 

Although there are symptom lists for each condition, people are different, and when it comes to the brain, it depends on a person’s base personality make-up, to start with, as to how a mental illness will affect them.  Of course, this is not always the case, but quite prevalent with personality disorders, as I know myself, having been previously diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD).

So, if mental illness can be portrayed via many varied symptoms by each individual it can make research and understanding by those not affected and viewing the illness from the outside very difficult.  This is also true of the sufferer who can be unaware of their symptoms.

However, symptoms are not the subject of this post – stories and stigma are.

The subject of stigma is one which, thankfully, many people are now fighting.  Mental health charities, advocates and many individuals are campaigning to stop others’ negative attitudes to mental illness.  They do this knowingly.  However, sometimes unknowingly, some individuals help reduce stigma by way of writing on their personal blogs, or social networks, and I applaud them.  Just by sharing our stories of mental illness, we help tackle the stigma that surrounds the subject.

I am very passionate about the campaign to fight stigma, so I wrote my first memoir ‘My Alien Self: My Journey Back to Me’ showing how my mental illness progressed from childhood, what it felt like to be ill, and my journey to getting better, but I also focussed on explaining stigma on the pages as well.  I also share articles and personal experiences on my website/blog, on social networks Face book and Twitter and by sending stories to magazines, mental health charities and organizations.  I then wrote my second memoir called ’39 (memoirs of Amanda Green)’ as a follow-up of my progress and life’s mini adventures.

Some of these mental health sites have huge audiences and are very powerful in their messages about mental health.

So far, I have had parts of my story published on:

 SANE.org – general mental illness/health – http://www.sane.org.uk/how_you_can_help/blogging/show_blog/290      and http://www.sane.org.uk/how_you_can_help/through_your_eyes/story/329Journeysonline – depression – http://www.journeysonline.org.uk/picks/amandas-storyMy editor’s writing site – http://wordznerd.wordpress.com/2012/07/09/guest-blog-author-amanda-green-on-her-memoir-my-alien-self-my-journey-back-to-me/Alison Smith-Squire journalist author interview about self-publishing      and writing my book http://sellyourstoryuk.com/2012/07/25/author-spot-amanda-green/Blackdogtribe.com Dad as carer to my mum with schizophrenia http://www.blackdogtribe.com/people-like-you/amanda-guest-blog-story-my-mum-and-dad%E2%A6-may-cause-triggering-some-%E2-please-read-careWriting magazine feature on writing my book and self-publishing      –

So, I encourage all of my lovely website visitors who read this, to share – knowledge is power and sharing really does help reduce stigma – do something today!

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In February 2012 I joined Twitter and shortly after, facebook. I was finishing the editing of my memoir at the time, and I wanted three things from Twitter.

Firstly, I wanted to be able to show my book to people who I thought would benefit from it (because I self-published I don’t have traditional/mainstream, or agents helping with publicity).  

Secondly, I was in awe of the idea that I could connect with people or organizations who could enhance my knowledge in the fields of mental illness, stigma or orang-utan campaigns.  How wonderful to be able to select news of my own choice – to follow or not to follow – just as I wanted. 

Thirdly, I could campaign freely, to an interested audience (my followers) about mental illness stigma or Orang-utan/unsustainable palm oil production issues – two subjects close to my heart. 

And, as a bonus, I had an inkling inside that I might be able to show some support to others in need, and share my experiences, and wisdom while offering positive inspirational messages to those experiencing mental illness.

I have suffered during my life, with Borderline Personality Disorder, Depression, OCD and anxiety issues.  I have written my life story in the hope that my recovery at the end would help other sufferers see there is hope, there are ways to feel better, and that suicide or self-harm is not the answer in the sometimes out of control, confusing or black moments in life. 

I got through my journey on my own, without social networks or forums.  Mainly, I didn’t want to talk to anyone else about my problems, I wanted to work on them myself, but also because I didn’t want my undesirable personality traits being played out to people I have never met.  I couldn’t trust myself is basically what I am saying.  I was confused, angry, upset, depressed – far too unstable for guaranteeing ‘social’ relationships.

I fight for the eradication of stigma, so I will not sit quiet and watch. I am the type of passionate person who will do, or say something on behalf of mentally ill people who cannot speak for themselves – I am an advocate. I can do that now since sharing my own stories, because I decided enough is enough and went to my local newspapers and women’s magazines to get my story out there. 

To protect my mum and family, since I wanted to write my book with ‘everything’ in it, including details about my family and their behaviours, I now use a pseudonym, and that is due also to stigma – something my mum has experienced a lot of, and I did not want her to experience anymore as a result of writing my life story.

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Both books are for ADULTS ONLY

Blog - www.amandagreenauthor.co.uk

Buy ’My Alien Self’ on Amazon www.viewBook.at/MyAlienSelf

Buy ’39′ on Amazon www.viewBook.at/39

Twitter - @AmandaGreenUK

Facebook – AmandaGreenAuthor

Goodreads – http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15840188-my-alien-self

Facebook book page – http://www.facebook.com/pages/Amanda-Green-My-Alien-Self-my-journey-back-to-me/268350159908283?fref=ts