[AR_Six]

I've been dealing with these issues for most of my life. It gets under control, and then out of control very quickly. The weird thing is that it has motivated me, too. I've always thought of the next thing I could do that might make it not happen anymore - getting a good career, getting the pride of my family, approval from my peers, putting together a stable lifestyle, being good at the things I enjoy doing, getting into good shape, finding someone, even distracting myself with hobbies. But even if it helps it doesn't make it go away, it'll come back.

People talk about the stigma associated with it, and that is one factor, because you don't want people to look at you differently. Partly it's people thinking there's something wrong with you, that's never a good feeling. But the other thing is, people freak the $*%# out. A couple of years ago I had a long talk with a good friend about it and sort of put everything out there, and just listening to me she was devastated. Who wants to burden the people they care about with something like this? That's a large part of why people try to just manage it themselves and deal with it internally I think.

But the other thing is, there's also an awareness issue for the people who are afflicted with mental illness in that it's not clear who to go to for help because it's not a normal illness or injury you'd just go to your doctor with. If I need someone to help me with my issues, someone who has experience treating these problems, how do I get in contact with such a person? It's probably tough to understand how paralyzing this illness can be. Even just committing to dialing a phone number and talking to someone is so difficult. That is the kind of awareness that needs to be raised - point people directly to the means to get help. Make it simple. Even if for only that reason I think this is a helpful program, same with hockey talks, same with mindcheck.ca.