Mental Illness Has No Boundaries
Fame, money or talent does not prevent mental illness from affecting one’s mind. No one is immune to mental illness, just as no one is immune to cancer. The brain is the most sophisticated organ in the human body and we have no access to it besides with imaging. And even then, we cannot really tell what is happening at the neuronal level.
Mental illness affects even famous people:
- Adele: suffered from postpartum depression, stating “I had really bad postpartum depression after I had my son, and it frightened me.”
- Lady Gaga: suffers from PTSD from a rape that she experienced at 19 years old, stating “my own trauma in my life has helped me to understand the trauma of others.”
- Leonardo DiCaprio: suffers from OCD, stating “I’m able to say at some point, ‘OK, you’re being ridiculous. Stop stepping on every gum stain you see. You don’t need to do that.’”
- Michael Phelps: suffers from ADHD since 9 years old, having used the swimming pool from a young age to burn off all of his excess energy.
- Demi Lovato: suffers from bipolar disorder which has caused her to battle drug addiction, eating disorders, self-injurious behavior and depression. She states the following about learning coping skills in therapy, “for the first time in my life, I started to feel.”
. . . and the list continues. Mental illness is real and can affect any human being on this planet. There is no reason to be ashamed of your mental illness. The goal is to make every person in this world comfortable with their diagnosis; not proud, but comfortable! Comfort brings upon happiness.
And we can use more happiness in this day and age!
Are you Ready? (This is Defeating Stigma Mindfully)
DSM (Defeating Stigma Mindfully) 