Anxiety or other mental illnesses

“I would tell my younger self that there’s no shame in asking a teacher for help, telling a friend that you’re uncomfortable, and that [anxiety issues] is just the same as falling down and scraping your knee.”  Lena Dunham

I started writing a different blog today and realised that it was too negative, so began again!

Anxiety is often a hidden illness as we only see people when they are feeling well and healthy.  When anxiety strikes, the person often stays at home or sits in their office space alone.

I with many others have troublesome anxiety from time to time.  As both a mental health professional and a person, this has impacted on me. I believe that acknowledging that I too have anxiety makes me a better clinician and person, however, I also note that this makes some people uncomfortable, and this has arisen on an occasional basis. 

My rationale for self-disclosure is to normalise mental illness, trauma and other life issues – which assists others seeking assistance.  Whether that be by friends, family members or a health professional.  At times, we all need assistance to learn techniques to modify our thoughts and/or behaviour. 

I admire those “famous people” who stand up and acknowledge their difficulties in life – whether mental illness, physical illness or alcohol and other drugs.  It makes it easier for the rest of us to speak up and get the assistance that we need and deserve.  In fact, I have a whole section dedicated to these folks in my bookcase.  I have also had the privilege to meet some of my heroes as I got them to speak locally of these very issues.

A favorite of mine (who I haven’t met yet) is Dr Mark Cross, a psychiatrist and fellow anxiety sufferer. I have read both his books and also followed his television series some years ago. His current book “Mental State” is a wonderful piece written about how difficult it can be navigating the mental health system in Australia and how he believes we can fix it.  It is well worth the read.  What I love about this book is that his own story about anxiety is woven into the book with no apologies, although he does confess that his anxiety at times overwhelms him.

Like I stated earlier, I admire those who stand up and acknowledge their own mental illness and hope that this message gets easier for others to hear over time.  As I believe, this will then make it easier for all in our society to seek the assistance that they need and deserve, without judgement of others.