Watching this You Tube entitled, "When Mental Illness Enters the Family" reminds me how important it is for a family member to support their love ones as they battle a mental illness. In the video, the speaker mentions that 1 in 5 Americans will have a mental illness in this country. My mother was one of the millions of Americans who have to face not only a mental illness but the physical illnesses that come as a result of their battles with mental illness.
My mother battled bi-polar a.k.a. manic-depression for my most of my childhood and a good portion of my adult life before her death in 2007. If she were alive today, she would have been approaching her 65th birthday on February 10th.
The one lesson I learned from her battles with a mental illness is that no one should have to face a mental illness disease alone. Collectively as a society we should work towards making sure those afflicted with a mental illness get adequate care and support. We need to break down the walls of stigma that still exist in this country as well.
I am thankful for all the friends, former colleagues, and students who have had the courage to share there stories regarding living with a mental illness.
