Concern about what others will think of your mental illness

i so enjoyed your post so upbeat and encouraging

Hi Dreamer, never stop dreaming 🙂 your friend Rox

Hi Momentum,
Hang in there. You are stronger than you feel. I live with an illness and have many friends and relatives who do as well. It is not easy and there will be trying times but you have to have faith in your higher power as well as your son. Being 19 is challenging enough and then you ad OCD and not willing to accept treatment makes things even harder. Try baby steps. When a person learns that in addition to all they are already experiencing they have another label it can be very easy to get into denial mode. Start by getting pamphlets, educating everyone in his inner circle as well as him. Try to find a local social club or a support group. You also have to do positive things for yourself because if you are not well it will be extremely difficult to be supportive.
Having said all that, if at any point you feel that he is a danger to himself or someone else call an ambulance and have him admitted. It may sound cruel but he may also be depressed and may need more intensive treatment at the beginning. All you can do is try. When I suggest that people support their loved ones unconditionally by no means to I mean jeopardize your own well being. It sounds like you are dealing with a lot on your own but you don't have to. Try reaching out to your community for help. As for his future, that may be too much to focus on right now and speaking from personal experience it is never too late to accomplish ones hopes and dreams but first one has to be stable in order to hope and dream and it does not sound like he is at this stage.
Always take time out for yourself Momentum and have faith that things will get better. Remember, being diagnosed with an illness is not the persons fault and it may take that person some time to come to grips with the reality that he/she needs to accept help in order to recover.

Hi, one of the biggest problems people have once they are told of their mental illness, they use it as a crutch, which allows them to use their condition when they want or to take advantage of certain situations or to say what ever they want and you have to accept it. Just because a person has a condition doesn't mean they are disabled or not intelligent in any way. They can accomplish what ever they put their mind to, the sad part is a doctor told them they have a condition and now they become so fixed on it, it begins to be a big part of their life. >I stepped up to the base and took on helping a 40 year old living with ocd, bipolar, severe depression, and living with paranoid schidzophrenia to the point I would find him hiding in the pantry to advoid being detected by the government with their heat sensors. He couldn't afford his medications at a cost of a $1000 a month, so, this guy was a wreck. Four months later, his boss(employer) asked him "Wayne are you back on your medication?" Wayne said no, Rusty has been helping me. By the way he was dianosed with ocd and bipolar in high school.
The brain is a very powerful tool once a person can control their thoughts. How does a person control their thoughts? By being selective of their thoughts. Its very important to know what the future looks like, its very important to prepare things today to make tomorrow easier, its very important to address issues with a positive attitude the same way a child is taught, plan tomorrow by illiminating any situation which may create stress,(remember when a person has too many little stresses, they can feel like one big one) write down everything you do in a day and do it again the next day like a journal, what you will see after a couple of months are paterns which are habits.
What I learned about people in generalthey are creatures of habits. when aperson has a mental condition this type of living allows the person to spend most of their time reliving the past or their looking to the future with very little hope. So, my advice to shake things up before more habits are developed. Habits allows you to eat, clean, watch tv, listen to a conversation, drive, and while doing these things be able to think about non-productive things like "I can do anything, I have a mental condition, I don't feel good, I this and I that. But, when a person is faced with new things to do each day, they havn't time to get lost on their petty trip.
I gave Wayne so many new things to think about he didn't have time to look back or to think about himself. I'm talking about a man who has been living with mental illnesses for over 20 years and here he was without medication and getting better with each day.
A person can chose to stay in their world or they can say If, I don't change my way of thinking I will not have a future. A person with any kind of mental illness has the ability to make decisions about their future. Looking back on yesterday only means tomorrow will be like today.

Hi,
I totally agree that persons with disabilities can do anything. I have a masters degree and a full-time job. In 20 years, I became incapacitated once but that does not mean living with an illness that I did not cause is easy. Some may use an illness as a crutch, some may truly be incapacitated a lot of the time and some may be in the early stages of their illness and acceptance can take time. I have met some wonderful people with chronic mental illnesses who have high IQ's, are artistic, educated, employed, in healthy relations and have loving and supportive families, friends and communities.
I have also met wonderful people who are so ill that it consumes them. As a consumer and an employee I am able to see both sides and I still believe unconditional love and acceptance are important components in the recovery process.
It makes a big difference to know one is loved and accepted regardless of a diagnosis. I have witnessed how powerful it can be but I also know it can be draining. I am one woman with one outlook from the inside and outside but I am so happy my post has generated discussion because it is a wonderful way for all of us to become more aware of others experiences and thoughts.
Thank you so much for your post....Rox

Yes ,amen .we all want to be respected even if we have Dissabilities we are still able, capable , ability to make a difference in the world .

Hi,
How are you? I have not heard from you in a while. I hope 2012 is being good to you. I missed your articulate and passionate posts.
Take care

I am frustrated this beautiful morning. It is troublesome when ones employer is the reason one became incapacitated due to unlawful practices and the employer is funded by the federal government to treat persons with mental illnesses.
This field has some horrible people working in it.

You sound like me. I was scheduled to return to work yesterday but my employer, a lead mental health agency, total hypocracy, refused to inform me of where to report. Therefore, I had no choice to extend my leave. I totally agree that there are some truly horrible people working in the mental health field. Having said that, I believe there are more consumers working in the field who use their status, their titles, their work as a form of therapy but that not appropriate. If you are working in the mental health field is it imperative that you get professional treatment for your own issues because you can actually hurt others instead of helping them. Transference and countertransference can be hurtful so for those of us that are priviledge with having both roles please protect both and make sure your issues are not interfering with your work.
My dear friend wrote me today and said "bullies don't like it when people fight back". Oh well,
God Bless

Hi Roxie43

I appreciate all your advise to us . It helps us think clearly . It's overwhelming situation when you have chronic illness .in denying not accepting the symptoms. Im glad your in the post.

Rosie and dahlia