My mother's positive influence helped me when I became a mom, in that, since my kids were young, I have not approached their challenges as something to be ashamed of (e.g., my daughter struggles with weight as do I and my son struggles with attention deficit and had mountains to climb since nearly the day he started school); rather, I have tried to shift the mindset to what can we do to work on this, also, trying to consider their feelings and trying to not overwhelm them. In a perfect world, it would be great if other people felt this way but some do not, so I have also given my kids the message that they don't have to share their concerns about their challenges with others unless they feel comfortable doing so.
Like others, it has become necessary to let schools, professionals, and some family members, who are interested and have a role, know information about my son's challenges; for example, he is inpatient now, so he is absent from school and family functions -- have to explain to a certain extent what is going on, where he is. I have also discussed my son with adults I know fairly well, who are truly looking to offer support and are interested in my son's well being.