Theresa Larsen
follow me on these sites
  • Cutting The Soul
  • Theresa Larsen
  • Published Articles
  • Blog
  • Awards, Excerpts, Reviews and Comments
  • Author Interview Questions
  • Resources
  • Book Information and Other Posts

Stop the stigma!

3/21/2014

0 Comments

 
Picture

Comedian Ruby Wax presented a TED lecture on mental illness that is inspiring. She tells us how mental illness has affected her. She says, "depression and mental illness may not be visible, but they are real — and they come with a sense of shame built in. When you are ill, you want to see your lump or your x-rays, but with mental illness you have nothing to see. Every other organ in the body can get sick and you get sympathy, except the brain."
http://www.ted.com/talks/ruby_wax_what_s_so_funny_about_mental_illness

I wrote about this in my book--Year 3, Chapter 2-Adjustments

     As well as visiting schools in April, Matthew received an MRI of his brain that I had wanted him to have since the start of his psychotic episodes. I still hoped to explain away all of his mental illness with a brain tumor. During Matthews’s recent yearly physical, he told the doctor that he had several fainting episodes in the past year. I scheduled an appointment for Matthew to see a neurologist. The neurologist drew blood, performed examinations, monitored Matthew’s brain with electrodes, and administered an MRI, but despite the search for something other than mental illness, Matthew’s brain was a perfect specimen.

I did not want to be the mother of a child with a mental illness. I wanted to run away from it, as I had wanted to run away from all of the symptoms he had displayed in the past, but I couldn’t. I needed to embrace and except his illness. Mental illness is an intimidating disease that people shy away from, but it is a disease, and it can be treated. Mental illness is a challenging illness, because we can’t see it or sometimes even diagnose it. Everyone wants to be able to look at their illness on an x-ray or a scan and say, “There it is.” People with mental illness are denied that satisfaction. There isn’t anything to look at and see, to touch or quantify; it’s simply there. We need to realize that mental illness is an illness, and we all have to learn more about it for the sake of our future generations.

Mental Health America’s motto is “The invisible chains of misunderstanding and discrimination continue to bind people with mental illnesses and addictions.” We need to help people break free of those bonds so they can obtain the support they need in a world where mental illness is not something they hide from or are embarrassed by, but rather an illness in need of a treatment.




Ruby Wax goes on to tell us, rather humorously, that our pets are happier than we are. Writer Helen Walters says, "Yet amidst the colorful drawings and exuberant presentation, we should be clear that Wax is deadly serious." "My point is, if we don’t learn to deal with this it won’t be one in four, it will be four in four who are really going to get ill in the upstairs department," Wax concludes. "And while I’m at it, can we stop the stigma? Thank you.”

Watch the video for yourself and see Ruby in action.

http://www.ted.com/talks/ruby_wax_what_s_so_funny_about_mental_illness

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    January 2019
    May 2018
    October 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    March 2017
    July 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013

    Click on the RSS Feed link  above to follow my blog

    Click on the All word below to view all blogs in a given year

    All

    RSS Feed

    Author Note

    The views expressed on this page are my own and should not be used to replace licensed medical care. Please note some stories may cause triggers for self-harm.

Proudly powered by Weebly