Serious? Complex? Severe?

For me it would be wonderful if I was to come on this site here and, instead of reading Mental Illness is Real, I would read:

NEURODIVERSITY IS REAL AND MUST BE RESPECTED.

Neurodiversity is a concept where neurological differences are to be recognized and respected as any other human variation. These differences can include those labeled with Dyspraxia, Depression, Dyslexia, Schizophrenia, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, Dyscalculia, Autistic Spectrum, Tourette Syndrome, and others.

But such kind of thinking would revolutionize the way in which we understand the challenges of people with mental disorder and I feel that it is a long way away into the future. Not for now.

I like complex. I was just thinking today that it's great that mental health is getting more media/public exposure than it used to but it seems that the downside of that is that (and this is probably a function of the circles I move in) everyone seems to think 'mental illness' means anxiety or depression that can be effectively fixed with medication. If only...!

As for your precise questions, I don't think my MH issues are serious or severe because, to me, those both denote an incapacity to function and I actually do function at a level where people who just meet me superficially would not know anything was wrong. If SANE was to describe itself as catering for people with serious or severe illnesses, I would think I didn't belong here.

My dx are now PTSD and DID. Neither are easy to fix and both impact on absolutely every aspect of my life and (in spite of how I present) the way I perceive everything. They can be very debilitating but don't have to be. 'Complex' works for me.

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@Former-Member wrote:

We're focusing our work, both in the Help Centre and throughout the wider organisation, towards the more serious end of the mental health/illness continuum. Where anxiety and depression become chronic and undermine our quality of life. Where a diagnosis of bipolar, a personality disorder, schizophrenia and more can quite radically change the course of our lives.

Thank you

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@Former-Member totally agree with what your doing but this is a minefield. I totally agree with what SANE wishes to do (and now knowing that this is something they are focusing on I will be donating). Thank you.

However, I really need to step away from my mental health experiences and offer some professional advice. I suspect that you and SANE are considering very carefully your messaging from all perspectives so I want to apologise in advance if are already considering what I'm about to say. But his comes from my professional experience (I've worked in public policy and now as a lobbyist) and I've just recently witnessed a clusterf*** on a matter similar. Everyone needs to think 3, 4, or even 5 steps in front.

SANE really needs to be careful about what impacts this could have on their business as a charity. (I agree with others here on the impact of sufferers). You guys need to think about how this will affect your messaging to both donors and the government (grants). This is a massive shift in messaging.

Looking at SANE's 2015 financial statement raised $1.8m in Government grants and another roughly $1.5m from private donations - 89 per cent of your funding.

What I'm concerned about (this is about messaging and not the great job you do) is the possibility of people switching off when they hear SANE talk only in terms of 'serious' rather than all mental illness. They'll think 'isn't all mental health serious?' I mean that's been the overall message out of the broader mental health sector for at least since 2010. Saying something like 'SANE strives to provide help and comprehensive support services for those with severe/complex/serious illness' may suggest to them that you are leaving some people suffering out. Then you're left struggling. And it's not true at all but that's how it could be perceived. Then you spend the next 15 minutes of your 20 minute meeting trying to explain yourself.

Seen it happen in meetings, politicians turn off immediately. Severe/serious/complex just immediately raise the issue of what about everyone else that has a condition? Or what constitutes servere/complex/serious? You see where I'm going?

I'm not saying stay away from talking about serious mental health illnesses but do it in a way that is more inclusive and less about casting lines. E.g. look at the ALP's 100 positive promises ad. Pretty much everything is positive very little detail but the actual policy positions themselves are very complex where positions will need to be taken that will hurt some people. I much prefer to see something like 'SANE strives to provide help and comprehensive support services for those experiencing a mental health condition and is in a severe/complex/serious situation' Whatever, it's an example. Something like that still gives you scope about what you want to do specifically (as you mention) but doesn't box you in to start with the perception of excluding people that need help.

I think 'chronic' is a good one too and specific and comprehensible. Failing that, I've changed my mind and think 'complex' is the best second choice.

I am trying to understand other people's perspectives here, which are valuable but need to be analyzed and I mean my ideas as well.

What most people are saying here is that Complex Mental Illness seems to be an adequate term?

Imagine me going for a job and telling my potential employer that I suffer with a Chronic Mental Illness. Or imagine me going to University and telling the students there that I suffer with a Chronic Mental Illness.

Or telling my neighbour. A woman that I like to go out with or a friend.

Would they be understanding? ... or would this combination of words fuel stigma and cause more problems for us sufferers?

Complex Mental Illness may be OK here; may be OK if we want to hide our mental disorder; but is that what we really want? To hide away and only use Chronic Mental Illness on this website? Or do we plan to tell the world: 'I suffe with a Chronic Mental Illness".

This would seem to me to increase stigma in the society. We can hide our mental disorder for a while but what if we became anxious on the job? What if some of the symptoms come to the surface? Does not hiding make it worse in this case?

You know, I have seen many people hide their mental disorder, till the syptoms come to surface and then things are much worse. People realize then that perhaps it was better to disclose. Believe me when I say that in my case the reason why I cope well in society because I have disclosed my mental disorder by calling it neurodifference or neurodiverse. People ask me: what does that mean? That I experience intense mood shifts and that I can experience some anxiety as well. They seem ok with this explanation and I don't feel that I attract much stigma. My friends know what is different about me and they respect me. But if I had told them that I suffer with a Chronic Mental Illness I probably would not have the friends that I have today.

I feel that one of the most important things we can do, is to consider how the words that we chose may affect us in terms of STIGMA. So far, in this discussion, I would say that Chronic Mental Illness would fuel STIGMA increadibly and make things much worse for us if we were to disclose, or if our symptoms were to rise in a social situation.

I have a Chronic Mental Illness...watch people disappear.

We can hide our Mental Disorder, or neurodiversity, but only at our peril because the moment that we let our guard down, whether by mistake or because our symptoms rise, that is the moment when things became very serious, and, as you all know, STIGMA is very dangerous. That is my reason for disclosing, I always think about what could go wrong and what to do when something goes wrong.

What I am saying here is this: always remember the term STIGMA when you come up with words because, as many have said here, words are terribly important.

Please feel free to tell me to get lost. I don't mind, I take no offence, I would simply discontinue writing on this post and have a short break and then start on something else in another post. I have very thick skin.

If I was to say about myself: I have a serious mental illness; or I have a chronic mental illness; or I have a severe mental illness; I would certainly not be where I am now, and would not be able to have recovered as I have.

Like Silenus says, words are powerful. If we think in this way we are simply throwing the tawel into the ring. Let's give up.

Chronic compared to what? Serious compared to what? Severe compared to what?

What is severe for me may not be severe for someone else.

It is not how severe, chronic or serious our condition is, it is mostly how we travel in our heads with it: towards recovery or towards chronic illness. I chose to walk towards recovery and in this position my situation is neither chronic, nor serious nor severe, it is a hopeful one, a positive one, no matter what.

I would say that any mental disorder is severe, complex and serious. I don't know any anxiety that is not serious for the sufferer, or complex for that matter. These wrods are self explanatory but do not need to be used as a main heading to describe how we feel. Everything to do with a mental disorder is serious.

The milder form of depression may be so troublesome for someone that they cope less well than someone else with schizophrenia or Bipolar, simply because the peoploe with bipolar or schizophrenia may have more education, may be more resiliant, and have the ability to deal with their disorder. So this disprove any attempt to classify seriousness on a scale to one to ten.

Our world is a world where negative words are used more than positive ones. Negative news sells. Negative stuff serves a purpose in the immediate terms but does a lot of damage in the long term.

e.

I like neuro diverse too. @theaveragejoe

I have used concepts like it on this site before.

I also like the tenor of your thoughts. Dont get lost. Hang about mate.