On World Mental Health Day, it’s important to talk openly about the taboo of living with mental ill health. I want to share how my life has changed for the better, even though my life is very different from what I imagined it would have been. We probably all have someone in our lives that is affected and the starting point is talking openly about it. This is why today I have taken this opportunity to openly say “some people have mental health support needs so get over it!!” I have borrowed this phrase from the Stonewall campaign. I think it’s a wicked way for breaking down taboos, and I say this a gay man living with a number of impairments, my mental ill health being one of the most incapacitating.
Mental ill health is sometimes the poor relation of other health conditions and there is still a lot of misunderstanding about people living with psychological and mental health support needs, mental distress and trauma.
During my own life journey, I have been quite fortunate to walk alongside some people that have truly understood how difficult living with mental ill health can be. I would ask people to think of what it must be like when the world seems so dark and you feel that there is no way out. This is only a symptom of the illness that I now know as part of my depression – when getting up is like doing a marathon and even opening the curtains frightens you because of how dark the world can seem. For me, this is something that is just an impairment. I have a chemical imbalance no different from any other impairment, but I think it is less visible and misunderstood.
The current national statistics show that 1 in 4 people experience mental ill health at some point in their lives. I can imagine these figures are not a true reflection of how many people could be suffering. I wonder what the real number is, as we know from all the work we have done over the years that people are still not seeking help and talking about living with mental ill health. This is very complex, however we know that the outcomes for people who do seek help are much better and people can live the lives that they desire.
While we have made some progress from where we were five years ago, it’s not perfect. But I can say I am now starting to get the support I need to live the life that I deserve. The road I travel has become more accessible due to the support I get. I have been using a direct payment and cannot tell you how life changing this is for me. I don’t have to go in and out of hospital now. I know that recovery is on a continuum and that sometimes I feel better than other days. But I have someone that supports me. Without this support, delivered how I want it, I would not be able to stay independent. I am taking back the power that I have lost to this bipolar condition. It has meant that I can start dreaming again. I had resolved to myself that I would never have the life I need and deserve, however this has changed and I now am able to stay safe and look after myself.
I would say that there is still a long way to go to ensure that people that need services get the right support, but I can see that some of the right steps are being taken to ensure this happens. Moreover, I want to say to people, remember that with the right support, you can do anything.
