Today is Mental Health Awareness Day and a few things need to be said about what the day is about. So many parents are dealing with mental illness, whether their kids are typically developing or that have special needs. If a parent (in most cases, the mother since she is the one dealing with the brunt of the responsibilities most of the time) has depression or any mental illness and is raising a child with special needs, that is a very isolating experience.
Unfortunately, mental illness and depression are misunderstood and heavily stigmatized by society. Most don’t realize or believe that mental illness is no different than a physical illness. The sad fact is that the stigma has prevented many people from taking this illness very seriously. That being said, I decided to create an Aha Book on mental illness and depression called Time to End the Stigma of Mental Challenges Like Depression.
This book has 140 Ahas of tips and tweets that state facts about depression that I had written up, as well as information on how to help yourself while recovering from mental illness. Of course writing these quotes and tips required me to do some research on self help tips for depression, as well as studying statistics. Some of these tips I found to be useful for myself too. In other words, this research was for my benefit too. None of these tips are meant to cure depression or mental illness since there is no such thing as a cure- not to mention, I am not a professional.
However, for those who are suffering from it need to find ways to cope and recovery can happen if there is diligence. Many of those who are dealing with depression and mental illness have a hard time finding motivation to get better and to cope. I understand how easy it is to be comfortable even though it is an awful place to be. However, everyone has to remember there is a better place to be. Once you find a reason to get out of that dangerous comfort zone (your kids, or something you want to strive for in the future as great reasons)- you will feel better, much better once you are out of it. It takes effort, but it is well worth it. There is never a need to suffer.
Check out the link to the Aha Book here. Time to End the Stigma of Mental Challenges Like Depression.
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