Mental Illness, the Cancer of the Soul

Mental health. Let’s talk about that.

Good mental health is like oxygen. You can’t see it, but if I took it away from you, you’d know it.

You would not tell someone with cancer to “Just get over it,” or “Put on a happy face and you’ll be fine.”

Mental illness is like a cancer of the mind, the psyche, the soul. With proper medical intervention you may get past it. Not over it, mind you, but past it. You may take it to your grave, or it may take you to your grave. You may outlive it, but it will mark you. You may begin to recognize the mark it has left on others. It may do a catch and release with you; it might come back for you.

If it has not yet touched your life, either through you or someone you know, just wait — it will happen. Some people are better at hiding it than others, but that does not mean it has no effect on them. If you delve into denial too long it has a much greater chance of killing you.

Lifestyle and genetics can affect your chances of getting it, but there are no guarantees in either direction. It is not weakness to seek help. It is not weakness to provide emotional support to someone with it, nor will it make you look better to make fun of someone with it.

Once you have a child, by the time you send one off to their first year of school, I can promise they will have cost you a bit of sanity, will have been the reason you spent at least a few moments in abject terror for their lives. You looked away for two seconds and they vanished — even if they only ducked behind the couch. You set up the child gate and figured you could take two minutes to go to the bathroom, only to discover you have bred a Houdini.

If you have ever felt that terror, for your child’s safety, your own safety, your parent’s or friend’s safety, imagine living like that, in that state of panicking anxiety, for an extended period.

Am I speaking of mental illness or cancer at this point? Answer: Yes.

Originally posted on Medium.com