Posted by Emme on May 11, 2004, at 11:36:29
Okay, so I was nice and went to see my mother for Mother's Day.
She talked about how a friend was frustrated because a mentally ill (don't know details) woman was trying to pester the friend into doing something for her. Mom finished up by saying "So you see, people who are mentally disturbed insist on having their own way." Guess that would include large portions of the human population, huh? :)
This from a woman with a history of lots of panic attacks, chronic anxiety and, I think, chronic depression. Thank god she doesn't know about my mood disorder or that I take medication.
Mom's comments aside, I'm going through one of my phases where I'm having a hard time with stigma. Growing up, I absorbed the idea that people who were referred to as "mentally disturbed" were really abnormal, weird people who were incapable of normal human relationships. People you just don't want to be around. People who "need help". "Them"
I don't know why, but at the moment I'm having a tough time with the concept of myself as having a mental illness. I go through phases of accepting it as I would any other illness, and phases of really feeling defective. I'm having a hard time saying "mood disorder" or "depression". I mean I know tons of people are walking around with depression, anxiety, you name it - half my friends are card-carrying members of the club. People here are cool. So why am I feeling so ashamed right now? Maybe I'm just maxxed out on it.
Can anyone relate?
Emme
poster:Emme
thread:345714
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20040507/msgs/345714.html