Today I am going to respond to a social media post about me. I'm going to do it with dignity, and not resort to name calling. I am not going to name the person, or show the post, as I don't think that would help. I will say that it is someone who knows me and doesn't like me.
Just because it’s called a mental health problem, it doesn't mean that I’m ‘mental’.
I hate the word mental. There are so many negative connotations that surround it; to call a person mental is to call them mad, or out of control, or ludicrous. Yet, unfortunately, I have a condition that is defined as a mental health problem; I have depression.
I was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) earlier this year. I realise now that I've been ignoring the symptoms for a long time. I was partly in denial and partly worried about telling people because of their reaction. I refused to tell work what was going on until I ended up in hospital. I was aware of the stigma around mental health at my workplace and kept everything a secret.
It is estimated that there are over 1.6 million people suffering from diagnosed or undiagnosed eating disorders throughout the UK. But the truth is, there will be thousands who don’t feel able to reach out for support. People who feel like they aren’t “sick enough”, “don’t look like they have an eating disorder” or are too embarrassed, because they don’t fit that “stereotypical eating disorder image” we all have in our heads.
