Social stigma and self care

hi @OneofUs

sorry your local townsfolk were cruel and ignorant about mentasl illness. You're not weak you're strong.

I avoid stigma by not telling anyone that I have a mental illness. It's hard sometimes when it's on the tip of my tongue to say, "but this is really hard for me, don't you understand I have a mental illness!?" I confide in my psychiatrist only & that seems to be enough. The rest of the time I can pass as "normal" now that I'm on good meds. Do you have a counsellor or psychiatrist you can talk to about you mental health?

I am a bit isolated & lonely but it helps to volunteer once a week and to meet new people through Meetup. I have to be careful sometimes when I volunteer because if I deal with someone a bit agro/stressful I get that burnt out/unwell feeling & it lingers. I am also learning to say no to new friends because I feel they take advantage sometimes of my caring/helpful side and again, I get that burnt out/unwell feeling for many days.

I live in a big city so there is a lot of volunteering & Meetups to choose from. It would be a bit harder for you in a small rural population but I'm sure there are nice benefits in the scenery & nature and such.

The other suggestion I have is finding a support group for anxiety. I used to go to one and you can talk about mental illness as much as you like and be as well or unwell as you feel on the day. I also think this forum will be a good support for you, there are lots of rural people. you may just need to reach out to them on lots of threads to introduce yourself so people can get to know you. It's important to tag people (type @ then the names come up and you choose the ones you want to tag).

I'm sorry to read about the stigma you have experienced @OneofUs and @BryanaCamp .

Though very glad to also read that you have found something that works best for both of you in your individual ways. Everyone is different in regards to how they manage mental illness and the unfortunate stigma that does happen sometimes.

Hope even if you are not using medical treatment, that you do have people around you that support you and you do seek help when needed.

Take care of yourselfs.

Hi and welcome @OneofUs 🖐😘 (Shout-outs to @BryanaCamp and @Former-Member too!)

I'm glad you decided to write on here as you have because we all need like minded souls to feel we're not alone in our plight.

Reading your post, it appears you've answered your own question within the text hun. 😮 What better project for you than to create a presentation for the town's people to come and see? If there's a Bowls, RSL club or community hall, you can ask to use their projector or some form of visual aid to let people know of the struggles people have; then answer any queries the audience has at the end. I'm sure if you request to use their facilities for free, the club or whoever will oblige with a smile.

PTSD is a very common disorder, so it's probable one of them or someone they know has experienced it at some point. For me, using what I've learned (the hard way I might add) has provided a new career and home business after realising there's a huge gap in service provision in the very area I struggled to find help with.

When we're down as low as it gets, yes, our self worth suffers. It takes time to heal the damage our brains have endured; then when things improve, getting out there to spread the word is an option. Charge people 5 or 10 dollars to cover your costs and maybe a cuppa and bickies at the end, (tell them this to make sure they get it) and it may be the beginning of something valuable...to you as well as your community. I'm sure you'll be seen in a different light 😍 People will say hello to someone they admire instead of feeling sorry for you.

I'd love to know what you think about my idea. Drop me a line if you see this ok.

Warm thoughts;

Hope xo

If you live in a rural area,dont tell the locals you have a mental illness. Mental illnesses are not well accepted , they will humour you , you will be talked and sniggered about and avoided. Invent an acceptable annoying but not serious illness like migraine headaches or irritable bowel syndrome, any thing that would be acceptable if you have to stay out of the way for a while. As a country person born and breed, it is well known that out siders take a long time to be accepted, so just play it cool and dont give away any information on your self that you wouldnt want repeated. Join a community organisation,and choose your friends carefully.

Hi @TAB .... can see by the emojis you included that you were being playful ....

Thanks for tagging me here. I will take a look at the convo and see if I can add anything remotely helpful ....

Hi to @OneofUs @jay2 @Hope4me .... and anyone else about .....

Reading back I can see you were are of the discussion earlier too @BryanaCamp ... so hi to you too.

Stigma is simply awful, and @Hope4me I love your idea about creating education opportunities out of this situation in whatever way opens itself up to us. It might be placing a pamphlet about PTSD on a local community noticeboard, or asking the local library to bring in a book about the subject for you, and carrying it with the title displayed to others around you in as natural way as you can manage, as a conversation starter. If you can organise an information evening, that would be fantastic, and perhaps a speaker on the topic, or Ted talk screening, would help with delivery of content.

In very small-minded communities it can be very hard, and that is one circumstance where online support can really come into it’s own, but keep shining your light within the community anyway, and give them a chance to get over themselves and more used to you. They will see that you don’t have three heads if they see you around and minding your own business amongst them, which does take courage, which we are here to support.

Hugs (or fist-bumps 🤜🤛) for your pain and courage .....

@OneofUs @Hope4me