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<blockquote data-quote="flutterby" data-source="post: 313804" data-attributes="member: 7083"><p>I tend to go with the truth, but not in a way to make someone uncomfortable. For example:</p><p></p><p>"My daughter is battling (struggling) with a psychiatric disorder (brain disorder, mental illness, whatever term you are comfortable with) and her life has taken a different direction for the time being."</p><p></p><p>You can then gauge the rest of the conversation on their reaction to determine how much detail you want to give. </p><p></p><p>I know that a lot of people don't want to use those words with someone for fear of being stigmatized, but I haven't found any judgment from others (at least not from anyone whose opinion I care about - there was this lady I worked with, but she was toxic and judged everyone, so I don't care ha!). I've found people to be very understanding and it can open a discussion into mental illness. Educating another about something that millions of people in our country alone deal with is always a good thing, in my opinion. </p><p></p><p>I don't say it for sympathy. Just very matter of fact. It's the truth. Mental illness is nothing to be ashamed of, just as one shouldn't be ashamed of diabetes or heart disease or cancer.</p><p></p><p>And, I'm sure you will find that a lot of people have a family member or friend with a mental illness and it may be a relief to them to know they aren't alone; as I'm sure it would be helpful to you.</p><p></p><p>I have suffered from Major Depressive Disorder for most of my life. I was hospitalized twice: August, 2002, and March, 2003. Even after coming out of the worst of that episode, I didn't want to spend time outside of my house. I felt like I was wearing a scarlet letter and was humiliated, ashamed, and absolutely mortified that some of my neighbors knew. It took years to rebuild my self-confidence. It was some time on this board before I could even share that information. I remember hiding my anti-depressants (and the fact that I took them) from my boyfriend. </p><p></p><p>You know, I don't want to live like that. I have a medical disorder. It just happens to be in the brain. I have nothing to be ashamed of. But, it took a long time to get to that point.</p><p></p><p>I understand if you're not ready to speak so freely with another.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="flutterby, post: 313804, member: 7083"] I tend to go with the truth, but not in a way to make someone uncomfortable. For example: "My daughter is battling (struggling) with a psychiatric disorder (brain disorder, mental illness, whatever term you are comfortable with) and her life has taken a different direction for the time being." You can then gauge the rest of the conversation on their reaction to determine how much detail you want to give. I know that a lot of people don't want to use those words with someone for fear of being stigmatized, but I haven't found any judgment from others (at least not from anyone whose opinion I care about - there was this lady I worked with, but she was toxic and judged everyone, so I don't care ha!). I've found people to be very understanding and it can open a discussion into mental illness. Educating another about something that millions of people in our country alone deal with is always a good thing, in my opinion. I don't say it for sympathy. Just very matter of fact. It's the truth. Mental illness is nothing to be ashamed of, just as one shouldn't be ashamed of diabetes or heart disease or cancer. And, I'm sure you will find that a lot of people have a family member or friend with a mental illness and it may be a relief to them to know they aren't alone; as I'm sure it would be helpful to you. I have suffered from Major Depressive Disorder for most of my life. I was hospitalized twice: August, 2002, and March, 2003. Even after coming out of the worst of that episode, I didn't want to spend time outside of my house. I felt like I was wearing a scarlet letter and was humiliated, ashamed, and absolutely mortified that some of my neighbors knew. It took years to rebuild my self-confidence. It was some time on this board before I could even share that information. I remember hiding my anti-depressants (and the fact that I took them) from my boyfriend. You know, I don't want to live like that. I have a medical disorder. It just happens to be in the brain. I have nothing to be ashamed of. But, it took a long time to get to that point. I understand if you're not ready to speak so freely with another. [/QUOTE]
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