The system is failing them?

What does the world know about mental illness?  Do we know enough, but do we choose to ignore what science has proven to be fact?

I am not sure of the answer to that question because well, I am not God.  I don’t know the inner workings of every being, but from what I have experienced in the turbulent world of being a mental health advocate is that the scientific material is available for the world to study, but we still choose to ignore it as a whole.  We still choose to use words like crazy, psychotic, manic, and bipolar for describing things that have nothing to do with the illness itself.  For example when someone is happy and then sad for apparent reasons someone might say, “Wow!  You are so bipolar knock it off!”  So it goes on and on as societies and cultures use these words as filler words because we have not been taught, or we choose to ignore how someone with Bipolar might feel hearing those words used in the wrong context.

This ignorance whether intentional or not is what causes the STIGMA surrounding the mental health world, but more so the severely mentally ill ie. those diagnosed with Schizophrenia and Bipolar.

I am a firm believer that you will know nothing about anything until you get out of your comfortable bubble and educate yourself, often times this looks like surrounding yourself with those who deal with these illnesses or struggles.  Because here is a crazy idea, these people are begging and searching for love and acceptance too, just like the rest of us!

But, all too often someone that has been diagnosed with bipolar or a severe mental illness walks around with a big sticker on their head indicating that they are less capable or stable because of their illness.  Let’s just have a little education session right now.  Bipolar specifically is an illness that makes it difficult for an individual to control and or regulate their emotions.  People with bipolar tend to swing from one end of the spectrum to the other being depression or mania.  Frequently someone can be diagnosed with bipolar and it is clearly evident to a doctor, but the patient may disagree or fight the diagnosis.  This is actually a symptom of the illness itself called anosognosia.

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton