What is honesty and how does it affect your mental health?

[quirkywords]

I want to discuss what honesty means to you and your health.

People say that they fake being well, or wear a mask so no one knows their pain.Is this being honest.

When we do not admit our flaws and our behaviours does this make it harder to have insight into our illness and harder to get better?

Do we need to be honest with ourselves and others in order to be well.?

Honesty can be a very subjective personal word. What one people feels is being honest another may feel is not.

For many years I was in denial about my illness so I would admit to myself I was ill, I was not honest.

So what does honesty mean to you? So lets start a conversation. All ideas welcome.

Everyone is welcome to comment, new posters, regular posters, I want everyone's ideas.

Quirky

[quirkywords]

Hello all

Small old, hat a great post butI will need more time to reply to it as i have a cold and am very tired. I do agree that people are looking for acceptance which allows for honesty and can feed back to acceptance.

Quirky.

[quirkywords]

Sorry smallwolf, I am so tired Idid not notice that auro text corrected your name.

Quirky

[PamelaR]

LOL, sorry Smallwolf. That's my sense of humour. Small old hat. LOL

[Birdy77]

LOL 😂

Wolfy, your new name is Small Old Hat.

Hope that's cool with you, cos that is rockin' the forums

[smallwolf]

Yeah. Whatever floats your boat.

Thomas Jefferson said "honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom".

And... I also read an article in the NY Times on how honesty can make you happier. Food for thought.

[quirkywords]

Hello everyone,

Small wolf

I agree with your quote of Thomas Jefferson about honesty being the first chapter in the book of wisdom.

It still begs the question about what honesty is.

I appreciate all your replies to this thread that has helped it develop.Thankssmall wolf and thanks to everyone who has contributed to their first month.

Quirky

[Elizabeth CP]

What is honesty? I believe it is telling the truth & living in accordance with your values & beliefs. It can become grey when you say something you believe but others disagree. For example if one person said something is blue & someone else said it was green they may both be honest but have different colour perceptions.

[quirkywords]

Hello all,

It can get trick y

Elizabeth,

What if someone honestly believes that one gender/ or race is superior to another and they are following their beliefs in a way others may find goes against what many believe.

Being honest does not make you right . Some people believe honestly that there is no such thing as mental illness . This is why i get confused with what honesty is and how it help or hinder our health.

Quirky

[smallwolf]

I think that we can only speak honestly in regards to things we have knowledge of. Otherwise it is an opinion.

Now, in regards to what quirky raised re gender etc., that is the result of a corruption of values? The same applies to race.

If you are repeatedly told something, and without seeing an alternative you will eventually believe it? There was a tv doco with Louis T the interviewer. It was about racial issues in America. A child indoctrinated by their parents will say things that are clearly wrong. Does not make it right.

I could also say that women once had a prominent position in the church.

It is a corruption of values that allows people to speak"honestly" about something which they have not experienced. And such ingrained belief systems take a long time to resolve.

[quirkywords]

Smallwolf,

Thnks for your comments. Your replies always give me so much to think about.

I suppose things that we believe to be 'right' were once considered 'wrong". So who decides what is right or is it just contextual.

If I had been born in a different era I would have been locked up in an asylum. There are people now who think I should not be taking medication . So who is right, is anyone right , do we just follow what we believe .

I think I may have strayed from my original topic of honesty and how it ffects your health. It is a complex issue that has many facets to it,

Quirky