This week I found myself involved in a very robust conversation on Facebook about mental illness. It began when an online friend shared a quote from Grant Cardone, a motivational speaker specialising in sales and business, which concluded: “by definition depression is not a condition but the actions of another on a person, place or thing. Want to get rid of depression maybe just get rid of some of the people in your life.”
I commented that while I thought that was probably good general life advice, it oversimplifies what can be a very serious illness. This drew responses that mental illness was ‘garbage’ and was ‘created by and categorized by psychiatrists’ to support big pharmaceutical companies.
After my head exploded, I tried very hard to have a constructive conversation on the topic. It involved comments from others like ‘I just don’t believe it exists,’ and, ‘you’re entitled to your opinion and I’m entitled to mine.’ True, except the existence of illness isn’t an opinion, it is a fact.
I was directed to a website which calls itself a mental health watchdog, established by the Church of Scientology. Not exactly independent, unbiased advice there, huh? When I remarked that there was a great deal of misinformation on the site, I was told that everything on there was true.
Just because you can find lots of people who say the same thing, doesn’t make it true. White supremacists, anyone?
I majored in Psychology at uni, so obviously I’m pretty interested in the topic. I also have encountered many people in my life that have been afflicted with mental illness – friends, family, colleagues, school mates, and housemates. While I do not have a mental illness, I think it’s fair to say I’ve had a fair bit of exposure to depression, anxiety, schizo-affective disorders, eating disorders and personality disorders. With all that I have seen and read and heard and learned, it is undeniable that all of these and others are real, observable, verifiable illnesses.
To claim otherwise is an affront to all of those who suffer and those who care for them and love them and worry about them.
To declare that mental illness does not exist is to deny the pain and suffering experienced by so many in our communities every day.
To suggest that mental illnesses are a conspiracy or are created by psychiatrists and pharmaceutical companies is misinformed. Mental illness has existed for hundreds of years, before it had a name. It has been classified because a variety of educated medical professionals noticed common clusters of symptoms occurring and so decided to name them for ease of communication. So yeah, mental illnesses were categorised by psychiatrists, but they weren’t made up out of nowhere. I have no doubt that diabetes or various cancers were also observed and named through a similar process.
Yes, I agree that some people are over-diagnosed and over-medicated.
Yes, I agree that there are practitioners out there who do not operate in the best interests of the patient.
Yes, I agree that in mild cases the symptoms of various mental illnesses can be managed through diet and lifestyle factors. And I’m a huge supporter of people doing everything within their control to minimise their symptoms without relying on medication. But it is also undeniable that in many instances the symptoms are too severe to be managed without medication, and we should not shy away from exploring those options.
It is partly due to influential people peddling misinformation that the stigma around mental illness still exists. To perpetuate that stigma runs the very real risk that a person who is suffering won’t ask for help for fear of being judged negatively. Add to that this concept of new friends and goals ‘curing’ depression, and you have someone who is already struggling to cope heaping pressure on themselves to fix it, all on their own, by running around like a headless chook. It’s a recipe for disaster.
It’s all about education, and I urge you to examine who is behind the various claims out there to ensure they are truly independent and not operating on some hidden agenda.
In Australia, beyondblue and SANE are just two organisations that offer reliable advice and resources for people who might need some extra support.
Hallelujah lady! Thanks for taking a stand and supporting those with mental health issues. Much appreciated x
Anytime Hannah 🙂 x
Have you heard about other people describing depression or other mental illnesses in general as a result from demonic possession? I stumbled on it a few years ago, and if I remember correctly, they tried to exorcize the evil spirit from the patient. Can’t remember what happened next. :p
Yeah I have. Not a fan of that either!
Are there people out there trying to buy your house? Are you going out for coffee in Melbourne in an hour, even though you live 200km away? Is your daughter coming to pick you up in a RAAF helicopter? Are you so frightened that you cannot believe in your own reality?
This, alternating with crushing depression, is schizoaffective disorder.
Thank you Tahli for being a champion of mental illness. You have grown up with it, and you of all people know that it it’s true.
Couple of things I’d like to comment on that I believe go hand in hand with the points you’ve made.
Along with the stigma, the mis-information and those who are purposefully doing their utmost to damage the cause there are also those who indirectly damage the cause, information and perception of mental illness for their own selfish reasons.
One of these types of people is the attention seeker. People who claim mental illness in order to get praise, sympathy and various other contact.
The other that I have noticed is becoming increasingly common, especially in the world of professional sport is the person who has done something wrong and claims mental illness to avoid the full consequence of their actions.
The consequence of these actions are that people, even those who have a good understanding of mental illness, are less likely to be sure who is and isn’t suffering, and that people who are actually having very real illnesses will slip through the cracks simply because people will havew become too jaded to understand, deal with and help those who are in need.
A recent example is Darius Boyd. He has apparently admitted himself to a facility to deal with mental illness. Many, in fact far too many people who don’t even know the man are claiming that he’s faking it to avoid other things going on. That assessment from the general public is what really worries me. If he says he’s suffering, we should believe him and offer all the support and love that we can. Better to offer assistance to someone who may not need it than for that person, their friends, their relatives, to suffer the worst of consequences.
That’s a really excellent point! Thanks for sharing it x
T! Very well said! *standing round of applause for T*
What I find disturbing is the fact that people are denying the fact that mental illness exists! What the? I mean that’s like saying ‘Oh no the moon doesn’t exists! It’s a figment of your imagination’!
I totally agree with you that these kinds of attitudes force the people suffering, and often in silence, to a darker, harder, closed in space where they can’t get out and to the point of not being able to ask for help!
These attitudes/comments/total disregard for another human being in need, are forms of bulling as far as I am concerned. It’s so so very very wrong. How would they feel if it were someone close to them? Mum/Dad/Brother/Sister? I can only pray they never know.
Nicky xx
Love this Tahlia. Thank you xo
Great write up Tahlia!
I have some questions! What causes depression? Is it a chemical imbalance? Self induced? What other conditions come into play?
From my own experience in my teens I used to drown myself in a hole of negativity and anger and was administered Zoloft 50mg twice a day I felt like it made everything worse, doctor upped the dosage, worse again – so I flushed it & had a conversation with a friend and realised it was only up to me to make myself & my life better. Every now & then I get depressed but by no means do I have depression. What I find the hardest is dealing with people who over dramatise – in which case I believe I made it all much worse in my head than it actually was & shouldn’t have been prescribed anything & instead had someone give me a reality check.
Yep, that’s a really great point! And I think what you’ve shared is a great example of why I think it’s important to try everything you can to improve your situation before looking to medication.
It’s all on a continuum I think, and really serious clinical depression has a chemical element to it which is why medication can be necessary. But surely what’s going on around you can contribute, too. Not always (sometimes people with a ‘perfect’ life find themselves in that hole), but it must have an influence. Sharing how you’re feeling is also really important – like you saw, sometimes it can help you get a bit of perspective and find someone to shoulder the burden with you.
Thanks for sharing your experience! I don’t have the answers but you’ve given me something else to look into x
Hi Tahlia,
Thanks for writing this! As some one who openly has depression, I’m so passionate about decreasing the taboo surrounding the topic – and standing up against those people who say depression doesn’t exist! I don’t think anyone can really judge other’s situations if they’ve never been there themselves – medication really saved me and I would do it all again in a heartbeat. It’s so important that people who have an illness are recognised and supported in both the health system and society! Thank you for also being an advocate. xx
Thanks Louise, and for sharing your story x
I am horrified that some people believe that mental illness is not real. It is frustrating when I am in the the midst of depression that I am aware that it is my thoughts that are putting me there, that I have the power to change my thoughts and simple snap out of it. Yet, of course, I cannot do this. Mental illnesses do not work like this.
Thank you for your beautiful, articulate explanation and argument for the facts.
Right?!! I think (hope) it happens because people don’t really get what it feels like, but that’s all the more reason to open up the conversation. Thank you for contributing to it x