Mental illness doesn't discriminate. Here's how we can fight it together.

Heather Loeb
·3 min read
6

I spend a lot of time talking about mental health, but I don’t offer focus on mental illness — not that they are opposites of each other. But here’s my chance; this week is Mental Illness Awareness Week.

I am severely mentally ill. My diagnoses include major depressive disorder, dysthymia, generalized anxiety disorder, avoidant personality disorder, substance use disorder and binge eating disorder.

I don’t think I’ll ever run out of topics for this column.

Seriously though, it’s important to focus on mental illness because there is still stigma. Recently I spoke to a group of people about my journey, and they were shocked. When most, or some, people think about mental illness, they think about the stereotypical groups that have long been associated with illness. I won’t say which groups, so I don’t perpetuate the stereotypes. It’s surprising to some when a college educated white woman gets up and talks about how she was hospitalized twice for suicidal ideation, cutting herself and had electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). It was surprising for my own family.

But mental illness doesn’t discriminate. It doesn’t care who you are, what you do, the color of your skin, etc.

Here are some facts you might find interesting:

• Annual prevalence of mental illness among U.S. adults, by demographic group:• Non-Hispanic Asian: 13.9%• Non-Hispanic white: 22.6%• Non-Hispanic black or African-American: 17.3%• Non-Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Native: 18.7%• Non-Hispanic mixed/multiracial: 35.8%• Non-Hispanic Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander: 16.6%• Hispanic or Latino: 18.4%• Lesbian, gay or bisexual: 47.4%

Like I said, it impacts everyone. Even if you don’t have a mental health condition, it still affects you directly or indirectly through family, friends or coworkers. I also want to point out that 1 in 5 adults experience mental illness each year. 1 in 20 adults experience serious mental illness each year (like me). And 1 in 6 youth (ages 6-17) experience a mental health disorder each year. All these states are from NAMI.org.

This is the kind of stuff that, in the past, we would try to sweep under the rug. I’m sorry, but that’s no longer an option. There’s no rug big enough. There are so many conversations happening, putting mental illness in the spotlight — we can’t turn back. But we still have work to do.

I know my job is to keep whittling away at stigma by writing, talking about mental illness and sharing my story.

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to continue to read my column (like what I did there?); research mental illness; talk to your neighbors, friends and family to dispel myths; and fight stigma.

Let’s fight together.

Heather Loeb
Heather Loeb

For more than 20 years, Heather Loeb has experienced major depression, anxiety and a personality disorder, while also battling the stigma of mental health. She is the creator of Unruly Neurons (www.unrulyneurons.com), a blog dedicated to normalizing depression and a member of State Rep. Todd Hunter’s Suicide Prevention Taskforce.  

MIND MATTERS

Now more than ever we need to take care of our mental health. Guest columnist Heather Loeb discusses why and explores other important mental health topics in this special series.

This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Mental illness doesn't discriminate. Here's how we can fight back.