Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

I bought into the stigmas about the mentally ill, until I became one of them

Sonja Wasden
Conditions
June 15, 2021
100 Shares
Share
Tweet
Share

The first thing someone says when I tell them I have bipolar, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive disorder is, “I’m sorry.”

For a long time, I was sorry too.

Bipolar runs in my family, so I knew the harsh realities of this untreated illness. A family member faked his own death after a counterfeiting spending spree. My grandfather told people that I would die in a car accident, and he would take my body up to the mountain and bring me back to life.

When I was younger, surrounded by this family chaos, it was easy to tell myself, “They are crazy!” I bought into many of the stigmas of mental illness — that those with mental illness are unpredictable, incompetent, and have trouble holding down a job.

I thought I was different. I was married to a hospital CEO, attended charity events, lived in a beautiful home, and had three healthy children. Yet, life felt unbearable. The stigmas around mental illness kept me from getting the help I desperately needed, so I continued to suffer in silence.

More than 50 percent of people in the United States will experience a mental illness or disorder during their lifetime. Mental illness and disorders are mostly considered negative. To many people who don’t have a mental illness, and even those who do suffer with a mental illness, view it as a personal failure or weakness. And I was no different.

In 2007, my husband and an emergency room doctor involuntarily committed me to a psychiatric hospital because I had become extremely suicidal. When the psychiatric counselor sat me down and uttered the three words, “You are bipolar,” I felt as if I was being handed a life sentence for something I didn’t do.

The additional disorders of OCD and anxiety only added to my invisible chains. I rejected the idea of mental illness and its permanence. The painful truth that I was going to have to manage these illnesses for the rest of my life filled me with grief. I began to mourn the life I thought I could no longer have.

As a psychiatric patient, the harmful stigmatizing words associated with mental illness, such as crazy, psycho, or delusional took on a whole new meaning. In 2015, I attempted suicide. That night I swallowed hundreds of pills, certain my life was worthless, I was worthless, and the world would be better off without me. Fortunately, the ER doctors disagreed and worked to save my life.

It was not difficult for me to stop using stigmatizing language about others, but to stop stigmatizing myself was a different story. I had to change my mindset from “I am bipolar” or “I am OCD” to “I have bipolar and OCD disorders.”

Millions of people suffer from different types of illnesses, and they do not say, “I am cancer” or “I am heart disease.” It is time to understand that those with mental illness are more than their diagnosis.

As I embraced treatment and developed skills, I started finding hidden strengths in my mental illness. Rarely do people talk about the positives that come with a mental illness.

My OCD gives me a keen eye for detail and a determination to successfully attain goals. Anxiety has taught me courage as I face my fears and move forward through each day. My bipolar has given me creativity and resilience.

Living with pain has made me sensitive to the pain in others and an understanding of what they need. I have experienced many depressive episodes and know firsthand that you can come out of them stronger, more empathic, and grateful for even the smallest things in life.

A wise therapist explained to me that I could lie in bed all day in pain or if I wanted a life worth living, I had to get out of bed most days and find my purpose, even while in pain.

Mental health advocacy work of destigmatizing mental illness — the very thing I struggled with — became my passion. I set out with my daughter in 2019 to raise mental health awareness one local library at a time by traveling to all 50 states donating my memoir. The pandemic forced us to stop in 2020.

We recently re-started our journey and visited South Dakota, state number 45. I received an email from a woman’s prison coordinator in South Dakota asking if I would donate copies of my memoir to the prison library and conduct a book club for the female inmates.

This email — along with so many others — was a reminder that just because a person suffers from a mental health disorder doesn’t mean they cannot make an impact.

I learned the hard way that when a person stigmatizes others or themselves, it is not only extremely damaging, but keeps them from receiving treatment and experiencing the gifts mental illness has to offer.

Every person needs to know they have a life worth living.

Sonja Wasden is a mental health advocate and co-author of An Impossible Life. 

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

Prev

Why it's time to split the autism spectrum [PODCAST]

June 14, 2021 Kevin 0
…
Next

Language is a barrier for many patients. Let's change that.

June 15, 2021 Kevin 0
…

Tagged as: Psychiatry

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Why it's time to split the autism spectrum [PODCAST]
Next Post >
Language is a barrier for many patients. Let's change that.

Related Posts

  • What will happen when the mentally ill get older?

    Raymond Abbott
  • Qualifying conditions for medical marijuana

    Patricia Frye
  • Settlements in the opioid cases need these non-negotiable conditions

    Rosanne Aulino, RN
  • What does Kelly Loeffler’s health plan do to coverage for preexisting conditions?

    Robert Laszewski
  • Cutting the red tape with buprenorphine treatment for opioid use disorder

    Christina Kinnevey, MD
  • How COVID is exposing poor working conditions in the U.S.

    Irene Martinez, MD

More in Conditions

  • Addressing dual diagnosis needs in addiction treatment

    Susan Hertz Berrick, EdD
  • Communication, power dynamics, and organizational culture in health care

    Beth Boynton, RN, MS, CP
  • Everyday dangers unknowingly impacting our health

    Tami Burdick
  • A shop teacher’s daughter on transforming patient safety

    Barbara L. Olson, RN
  • What happened to the chemical pathologist?

    Martin C. Young, MD
  • Second chances and simple beauty in thrift stores

    Debbie Moore-Black, RN
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Challenging the diagnosis: dehydration or bias?

      Sydney Lou Bonnick, MD | Physician
    • A teenager’s perspective: the pressing need for mental health days in schools

      Ruhi Saldanha | Conditions
    • Understanding reproductive rights: complex considerations

      Anonymous | Physician
    • COVID-19 unleashed an ongoing crisis of delirium in hospitals

      Christina Reppas-Rindlisbacher, MD, Nathan Stall, MD, and Paula Rochon, MD | Conditions
    • Air quality alert: Reducing our carbon footprint in health care

      Shreya Aggarwal, MD | Conditions
    • When physicians are disrespected [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
  • Past 6 Months

    • Medical gaslighting: a growing challenge in today’s medical landscape

      Tami Burdick | Conditions
    • I want to be a doctor who can provide care for women: What states must I rule out for my medical education?

      Nandini Erodula | Education
    • Balancing opioid medication in chronic pain

      L. Joseph Parker, MD | Conditions
    • Unveiling excessive medical billing and greed

      Amol Saxena, DPM, MPH | Policy
    • The erosion of patient care

      Laura de la Torre, MD | Physician
    • I’m a doctor, and I almost died during childbirth

      Bayo Curry-Winchell, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • When physicians are disrespected [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Addressing dual diagnosis needs in addiction treatment

      Susan Hertz Berrick, EdD | Conditions
    • The essence of health narratives, including poetry

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Physician
    • Discover the power of patience

      Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH | Physician
    • Doctors rediscover joy in practicing medicine, on their own terms

      Kim Downey, PT | Physician
    • End-of-life ethics and antibiotic use [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

Leave a Comment

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

CME Spotlights

From MedPage Today

Latest News

  • Novavax's Updated COVID Shot Authorized by FDA
  • SBRT Noninferior to Conventional RT for Intermediate-Risk Prostate Cancer
  • Mixed Bag for Early Metformin in Gestational Diabetes
  • FDA Advisors to Consider DFMO Maintenance for High-Risk Neuroblastoma in Kids
  • Adding Tirzepatide to Basal Insulin Cuts HbA1c in Poorly Controlled T2D

Meeting Coverage

  • SBRT Noninferior to Conventional RT for Intermediate-Risk Prostate Cancer
  • Mixed Bag for Early Metformin in Gestational Diabetes
  • Adding Tirzepatide to Basal Insulin Cuts HbA1c in Poorly Controlled T2D
  • Low Relapse Rates With Twice-Yearly Schizophrenia Treatment
  • Menopause Can Negatively Affect Women's Careers
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Challenging the diagnosis: dehydration or bias?

      Sydney Lou Bonnick, MD | Physician
    • A teenager’s perspective: the pressing need for mental health days in schools

      Ruhi Saldanha | Conditions
    • Understanding reproductive rights: complex considerations

      Anonymous | Physician
    • COVID-19 unleashed an ongoing crisis of delirium in hospitals

      Christina Reppas-Rindlisbacher, MD, Nathan Stall, MD, and Paula Rochon, MD | Conditions
    • Air quality alert: Reducing our carbon footprint in health care

      Shreya Aggarwal, MD | Conditions
    • When physicians are disrespected [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
  • Past 6 Months

    • Medical gaslighting: a growing challenge in today’s medical landscape

      Tami Burdick | Conditions
    • I want to be a doctor who can provide care for women: What states must I rule out for my medical education?

      Nandini Erodula | Education
    • Balancing opioid medication in chronic pain

      L. Joseph Parker, MD | Conditions
    • Unveiling excessive medical billing and greed

      Amol Saxena, DPM, MPH | Policy
    • The erosion of patient care

      Laura de la Torre, MD | Physician
    • I’m a doctor, and I almost died during childbirth

      Bayo Curry-Winchell, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • When physicians are disrespected [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Addressing dual diagnosis needs in addiction treatment

      Susan Hertz Berrick, EdD | Conditions
    • The essence of health narratives, including poetry

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Physician
    • Discover the power of patience

      Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH | Physician
    • Doctors rediscover joy in practicing medicine, on their own terms

      Kim Downey, PT | Physician
    • End-of-life ethics and antibiotic use [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Leave a Comment

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...