20/05/2024
From Elizabeth Spring - a friend, podcast guest and co-presenter at this upcoming conference.
Ya. I know. Taboo. Not even supposed to use that word. Makes people uncomfortable. Could be upsetting. Supposed to use some odd script instead of the real “S word” so one’s account doesn’t get flagged. And if one happens to pair it with the word “committed”, one runs the risk of being shamed into silence and possibly slapped with the label of BAD while being ushered out the door toward Exile Island by good people, who’re the boss of how suffering people can speak about their suffering. The ones who decide in the best interest of everyone which words will be accepted and which will be stigmatized, in the somewhat ironic battle to *end the stigma* around mental *health*.
Isn’t it strange that $uic!de continues to be a real thing, a “problem” every good hearted person wants to “prevent” yet few will talk about, honestly or openly? And when some do dare allow conversation about (sooiside) to happen, many get all picky and police-y about HOW people can speak about, or rather, speak AROUND “the issue.”
I’m not sure anymore who is or isn’t mentally healthy or mentally ill. After all, that phrase too, has been stigmatized and replaced with the more appealing euphemism, “a person experiencing mental health issues.” So who IS mentally ill, if anyone actually is? Well, I’m willing to admit it. And up the ante! Ever heard the term, comorbidity? It comes along with multiple diagnoses, of any illnesses. So if I have an illness or disease below my neck and one above, it’s ok to speak freely about my bodily affliction but not my mind? Isn’t it interesting that it’s the mind that has the problem and gets offended with the language we use….
I think it helps us all feel less sh*tty and less alone to be able to have open conversations about our personal experiences. Both pleasant & unpleasant ones.
