Cassie Talks - Mental Health

  If you don't feel in the mood to read you can just sit back, press play and watch the video instead.  Some people just don't understand mental health and mental illness and it's OK to not understand. However it isn't OK to judge or discriminate those who are affected by mental ill health. It is easy to judge and discriminate based on ignorance, it is more difficult to understand which is why there is so much stigma. Those who have poor mental health need kindness and empathy not judgement and discrimination. We need to remember 1 in 1 has mental health. That's right, we all have mental health which we need to look after. Our level of mental health and wellbeing can vary over the years and with the ups and downs of life. Sometimes like our physical health it can become unwell. Poor mental health can effect absolutely anyone. 1 in 4 people experience mental illness at some point in their lives. The World Health Organisation reports: 10% of children have a mental hea...

There are links to helplines at the bottom of this post. If you don't feel in the mood to read you can just sit back, press play and watch the video instead. Mental health illness can affect men and woman alike. Men suffer from mental health problems at very similar rates to women, yet they are far less likely to seek professional  help and  they are also less likely to disclose a mental health problem to friends and family. Many men don’t feel comfortable discussing their emotions, there are many reason's for this: Society has wrongly taught our boy's to not express sadness during childhood, boy's don't cry or being told to man up  are common harmful phrases. This makes them believe that they aren't supposed to show their feelings, and so they grow up as men who don't express how they feel. Men are not taught how to express their emotions so don't know how to. Many people perceive that men are weak if they cry or admit to mental health distress, ...

An open letter about mental illness and social stigma. Dear Society, I am sitting near the window watching the world go by, occasionally glaring at my laptop as I try to type this letter. It's not unusual these days for me to watch the world pass me by, you see I am not very well. I don't have the flu or a stomach bug, I don't have a broken leg or diabetes. I do however live with a serious illness, debilitating at times when I relapse, I live with mental illness.    Before I go any further I want to make it perfectly clear I am not writing this letter for attention, as many people would like to tell you I am attention seeking, this is not true. I know my feeling unwell is just a dent in the road, a mountain I need to climb and I am determined to reach the top. I know what I need to do to feel better. I am writing this letter to educate and raise awareness because even in this day and age there are many people who are not empathetic towards situations that they do not...

Challenging Stigma: Myths Vs Facts Myth: Mental Illness is not a real illness. Fact: Mental illness is just as real as a physical illness. Our mental health and our physical health are both important to our wellbeing, just because you can't see a mental illness, it doesn't mean that it does not exist. Mental illness causes great distress and is more than just the ups and down's of life. Mental illness is a real health problem with effective treatments. Myth: Mental illness will not affect me. Fact: The World Health Organisation (WHO) reports approximately 450 million people worldwide have experienced mental illness. Mental illness is more common than many people realise, you may not experience a mental illness yourself, but it’s very likely that a family member, friend, or colleague will experience mental health illness. Myth: Children do not suffer from mental illness Fact: Children can suffer from mental illness. Mental health problems are said ...

 "We all have physical health which we need to look after, when we become unwell we go and see a doctor and/or confide in friends and loved ones. We all have mental health which we need to look after but yet stigma and discrimination can stop many people from seeking help and confiding with friends and loved ones if they become unwell. Mental and physical health are both important to our wellbeing, just because you can't see mental health illness, or confirm it through a blood test, urine sample or an X-ray it doesn't mean it is not a real illness, mental health illness is just as real as a physical illness. Mental illness does not discriminate, however many people still discriminate those who are affected by it. We all have mental health which we need to look after, mental illness can happen to anyone. So before you judge someone or make an unkind remark, stop and think how you would feel if it happened to you"  - Cassie

Trigger warning. An honest account about the social stigma I have encountered, self stigma and how I broke free. If you don't feel in the mood to read you can just sit back, press play and watch the video instead. When I was diagnosed with mental illness I was very lucky to have people around me who did not stigmatise me, who saw me as me and not my diagnosis. However when I stepped out of my comfort zone and into society I was hit with the stigma of mental health illness which many people have to battle with from time to time. As soon as some people and I am talking about people in the health care system as well (not all I must add) knew I had mental illness they did not see a human being standing before them who was very similar to them. All they saw were the differences, to them I was a walking talking diagnosis. I may as well of developed horns or an extra head. As soon as they were aware of my diagnosis which is Bipolar Disorder, Emotional Unstable Personality Disorder and A...

Mental health illness does not discriminate however many people still stigmatise and discriminate those who are affected by it. Mental illness is not a sign of weakness, it is not something to be ashamed of, nor does it only target specific groups of people. It effects people of all ages, educational and income levels and cultures. Lets have a look at what stigma is, how it can effect us and how we can cope with it. What is mental illness stigma? Mental illness stigma is when people hold negative judgemental beliefs against people who live with a mental health illness. They are often stereotyped into groups and defined by their mental health diagnosis. Many people stigmatise others because of preconditioned ideas and by certain . ignorant media hype. Stigma often leads to discrimination and can isolate many people How can stigma effect us? Stigma can drastically effect and distort one's views, there is substantial evidence to support the findings that stigma associated with...