Dear Friend,

I have something to share with you. I have an illness. If I had diabetes or cancer, would you think less of me? I hope you read this with an open mind and heart.

I have a mental illness. Did you know? Does it show? I am the very same person I was before I revealed this to you. Most of us are afraid to tell. We are afraid our relationships will go to hell. There is a particular stigma associated with mental illness that is not found with physical illnesses.

Do you look at me differently now that you know? Are you afraid of what I might do? Does being my friend frighten you?

With that being said, there are a few myths I would like to dispel.

Mental illnesses are not character flaws. Those individuals with mental illness have differences in the structure and function of the brain.

Mental illnesses are not untreatable. Today, with medication and/or therapy, most people with mental illness are able to lead relatively normal lives.

Most of us are not homeless, although a large percentage of the homeless do have a mental illness.

Most of us are not and never will be violent.

Most of us are not addicts.

We don't ask to be treated differently than anyone else.

Most of us are not criminals.

Criticizing us will not cause us to harm ourselves. You do not have to walk on eggshells around us.

We are no more different from you than if we had diabetes or cancer.

I hope we can still be friends. I am the same person you were friends with last week or last year. I have not changed. I have just decided to be honest with you.

Your Friend,
Debbie

P.S. I have had Major Depressive Disorder for nearly twenty years. There are very effective treatments today. By sharing this, I hope to help you learn more about and accept those with mental illness. DEJ