I've kept this one bottled up for a while. I was not really sure if I found it mildly offensive or not. But the older I get and the more I have traveled on my journey with mental health issues, I have realised that the romantacizing of mental illness is not okay, and gives those who do not fully understand, misconceptions about our illnesses. I know that not everyone with mental health issues suffer the same but the portrayal of mental health in the media is beginning to dangerously leak into the minds of the younger generation (I will come back to said reference in a little while!).
In the media people with mental health issues are portrayed as psychotic, uncontrollable and animal like. I'm yet so see a character in a film or television show with a mental illness and feel fully supportive of how they are portraying any of the illnesses that fall into that category. Thinking off the top of my head I cannot think of one character with mental illness portrayed in a positive light. Yet I can think of several that fall into some form of mental health issues that are shown as annoying, or vulnerable in need of rescuing from a handsome man.
This is leaking slowly into the minds of the newer teenagers. The online generation. The endless teenagers that spend their time creatively writing and reading fanfiction on the internet, or producing art to go on sites like tumblr. I've done my research into it because I wanted to know more. What I saw was completely terrifying at some degree or another. Very much in the fanfiction world mental illness is shown as something that can be soothed by the main character. Like an angelic man will gracefully fall down, gently remove the blades from your hands, lovingly bandage you up and then hold you until "the pain has all gone away". Or in other cases, the loving band member bringing you tubs of ice cream, cuddles and dvds when you are feeling depressed (mainly written as just having a bit of a rough day.)
As much as those things would be lovely when you're not feeling 100% they just don't happen. The world is yet to fully understand mental illnesses and no one truly knows how to deal with it as everyone is different. I know for young adults writing stories about it can be hard when they don't truly understand, but it can be scary how little they actually know when posting things online (especially tumblr, a site known for a haven of self hatred when you need it most). You see I wouldn't have known that information if I hadn't been deeply depressed, suicidal and in need of something to make me feel less alone in the world.
Mental Illness isn't about snuggling a loved one "until the pain goes away", a lot of the time, you're hidden away from the world, alone, under your duvet and trying to block out the world around you. Depression isn't just "feeling sad" for a few hours, it can last days, weeks and even months and once you've been to the deepest pit of hell with it, you can say easily that it's not just "feeling sad", it's much more complex and unable to explain properly to anyone who asks. When I feel depressed I like to say that I feel like I'm drowning, it's a good metaphor for how I am feeling, because when I feel love, I feel cut off from the world and unable to escape, it's hard to breath and it's scary, which now coincides with my "fish bowl" theory that I talked about last time I got really depressed ( Life From The Outside of a Fishbowl ).
It's just that mental illness is not some like a beautiful escape from normality. If anything having a mental illness is like being pushed into a deep hole and no one can get you out. It's not dramatic eyeliner, and extremely deep quotes. It's never going to be a beautiful thing to have and there are always going to be people that think we're psychotic lunatics that go around murdering people all the time. I wish it didn't have to be like this. I admit, sometimes, I do wish a gorgeous musician would come and cuddle me with ice cream and a movie when I felt depressed but it's just not reality and it won't ever happen like that.
Lots of Love,
Rebecca
xxx
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