Going Green For Mental Illness Awareness Week

Hi Everyone.  Last Sunday kicked off the Go Green For Mental Illness Awareness week with a beautiful candlelight vigil.  While some diseases like breast cancer awareness get an entire month while mental illness gets only 1 week.  1 week designated for a disease that affects 1 in 4 people and it does not discriminate against age, sex or nationality.   You would think we could come up with something longer than a week for a disease that affects so many wouldn't you?

Mental Illness affects my life and greatly affected my life when I was growing up.  I have a sister with bipolar disorder and as often is the case in young people she was not diagnosed until she was well into her adulthood.  When you are young and they are young you might just try to pawn off this behavior on the terrible and rebellious teenage years.  When you get older and they get older you chalk up such behavior as mood swings or you try to cite their astrology sign or having their period as all legitimate reasons as to their behavior.

Mental Illness is something that must be diagnosed by a doctor.  And it should be treated by both and doctor and a counselor.  If you are someone who tosses out the phrase I'm bipolar without ever being diagnosed you are doing a great dis-service to yourself and others.  Mental Illness comes in many different forms from moderate to severe.  It's nothing to joke about, and it certainly should never just be excused without medication.

I have chosen the gorgeous Shapeshifter by Darling Diva Polish to showcase one of my Go Green For Mental Illness Awareness mani's.  When you are someone with bipolar disorder or live with someone with bipolar disorder you know all to well that you many times are two different people.  Depending on your manic swings your good days are really good, but you bad days are very very very bad. 

Shapeshifter is an incredibly gorgeous deep olive green that flashes to blue in its linear holographic arc

Living with untreated bipolar disorder you never know from one day to the next the person who will face you in the mirror.  And just like a shapeshifter you are powerless to control the change in your moods

Bipolar Disorder can be treated with medication.  It can help you function on a daily basis and help you maintain a job, a relationship and have a family.   

There is help out there for those who live with a mental illness and for those who love and support someone with a mental illness.  If you are looking for help for yourself or a loved one NAMI--the National Alliance for Mental Illness will assist you in getting the help you or your loved one needs.  You can find more about them HERE including the one closest to you. 

Darling Diva Shapeshifter is part of the Witchee Collection and can be found HERE 

Thanks for stopping by.  If you haven't already please take a moment to read up on mental illness and they many forms it has.  Please be mindful of the everyday phrases you might use and toss out carelessly.  As mental illness DOES affect 1 in 4 people you probably work with, go to church with, live by, are friends with and even love someone who is mentally ill.

Lets work hard to end the stigma associated with mental illness.  It's wrong and has no merit to our lives.