Telling My Story to the World

[Jasmine_B]

Hi there everyone,

I have been considering, for a long time, telling people about my depression and anxiety... but I'm ironically too anxious to do so! I always second-guess the idea and talk myself out of it.

Have you told people on your Facebook page, etc., about your mental illness? Do you have any advice?

Thanks in advance,

Jasmine 🙂

[blondguy]

Hello Jasmine

A big welcome to the forums and what a pro-active person you are too 🙂

I have had acute anxiety since 1983 and depression since 1996 (just to let you know who you are talking to)

It took me a few years in the '80s to tell anyone about it but nowadays I dont really care who I tell.

If I was young like yourself I may tell my friends....family. The only reason for limiting who I would tell is that some people that dont have any anxiety/depression sometimes dont understand we use 'invisible crutches'

Having a mental illness to me is no different to having a physical problem...broken leg....migraines..having to wear crutches...even though people cant see that we have a problem.

Just a question Jasmine if thats okay...how long have you had your depression/anxiety...and have you had a chance to speak to your GP about it?

There are some super kind people on the forums that can be here for you Jasmine...You are more than welcome to post as many times as you wish 🙂

My kindest thoughts for you Jasmine

Paulx

[PatT]

Hi Jasmine,

I've admitted time and time again that I have mental illnesses on facebook. I find it pretty liberating to be honest and I think it's a good way to raise awareness and reduce stigma as well as make people more sensitive to the fact that you're dealing with something that isn't exactly visible to others as a physical illness would be. It can improve relationships when people know that there are times you'll be well and times when you won't be and it's out of your hands.

[romantic_thi3f]

Hey Jasmine B,

Welcome to the forums and thanks for posting!

It can be a big deal coming out and telling people about depression and anxiety, but it can be a really good thing too as then you have more people who can support you and know that you're struggling. Often, not telling people can be harder in the long-term because people don't understand and we can feel very alone. So maybe one thing that might help is trying to think about who you want to tell and how much you want them to know.

I have a Facebook account but I don't put anything on my Facebook about my struggles. I'm not ashamed of it, but it's kind of personal to me so I only really tell the people closest to me. You may find that it's better to tell people in person too because that way you know you can be supported (where as if the Internet cuts out that could be a bit awkward!).

One thing that other people have found helpful is finding info about depression and anxiety like pamphlets and things. Often people (especially parents) can struggle to wrap their heads around things. This doesn't mean that they care any less, but they just might not react in the way that you hope. The best advice though is to give people time to process it. With my parents though, I didn't have to tell them as I think they just knew from a pretty early on time.

I hope this helps a little 🙂 I would say that it's definitely worth it in the long run cause you get more people in your corner. Win win.