A bruised mind, darkest of days

So, this might seem a bit contradictory because my last post was about happiness but this is a topic I feel very strongly about. Mental illness affects many people in our society and for them, happiness is hard to come by.

Last week I went to a mental health public forum for an article I was writing for uni (last article for uni EVER, how exciting!). It's been done and it's handed in now but somehow I can't stop thinking about some of the things that were discussed.

Did you know that on average, people with severe mental illnesses live 25 years less than the rest of the population? I didn't. Apparently 75% of these deaths are caused by physical illnesses rather than the mental problems. Pretty sad hey?

These are shocking statistics but I find it more shocking that I wasn't aware of this and wonder how many other people would be surprised too. Mental illness still has a huge stigma attached to it. As Australians, we don't really make it easy for each other to get out how we're feeling without being labelled 'emo' or an 'oversharer' or in some cases 'un-Australian'!

I understand this perception. Even though I'm a stress head, I'm a massive believer in positive thinking. For a while, I had a hard time wrapping my head around a close family member's condition, thinking they were just a bit depressed...or ashamed to say, putting it on for show. I would be confused as to why they could not get up before 1pm and frustrated at their lack of drive.

Now I realise these problems go so much deeper than just your mindset on life, but there are a ton of other factors involved, such as genetics and biological make up. For people with mental illnesses, every day is a battle and the truth is, the majority of these people have to deal with it for the rest of their lives so they really don't need us telling them to 'get over it'!

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I just thought I'd write this post to encourage you not to dismiss mental health issues, and to try and have some compassion (something I am still learning, trust me) for those who deal with these problems on a daily basis.

xx Luce