These blogs are written by people with personal experiences of mental health problems at school, college or university. For instance, the blogs below include stories of teachers discriminated against by their employers and students who have opened up to friends and family about their illness.

It is incredibly important to tackle mental health stigma and discrimination at school, college and university: fear of negative reactions to their mental illness stops 32% of young people with a mental health problem applying for further education.

Simply talking mental health problem can help strengthen relationships, help recovery and challenge the stigmatising stereotypes that surround mental illness. By talking about mental health these bloggers aim to break down stereotypes and take the taboo out of something that can affect us all. Pledge to share your experience of mental health today >>

Mental health awareness week: don't let people suffer in silence

May 21, 2012

Psycho, nutter, loon, mad, mentally ill. To be honest it doesn’t matter what terminology is used, they all spell out the same thing: I’m different, an outcast, not "normal".

From the moment a referral was made to mental health services I was suddenly a different person. It didn’t matter that five minutes ago I was like everyone else, just a fifteen year old girl. Suddenly I was set apart and needed different treatment to everyone else.

Body Dysmorphic Disorder: "I am glad that I can now talk openly about it"

May 15, 2012

I first became unwell as an adolescent. At age 14, I started experiencing severe depression, panic attacks and obsessive tendencies. The obsessive behaviours included compulsive skin picking, a disorder also known as dermatillomania. I began to pick at areas of skin on my face.

When help seems to fail, who do you blame?

May 14, 2012

Photo of two santa statues on a window sillAt the young age of ten it was easy for me to remember my dolly whenever I left the house and to hide my vegetables in the dog if I didn’t want to eat them but to understand and be aware of mental health was a completely different matter.

For That Strange Little Kid...

May 10, 2012

Painting of a man's face'Look at his wild eyes; he’s mad'.

I distinctly remember my brother and my mother looking at me and saying those words. I must have been around thirteen or fourteen. They were both sitting on the sofa and I was in the middle of the room

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