To Those Struggling With Their Mental Health Who Haven't Yet Reached Out for Support

Don’t allow the fear and ignorance of others make you feel like a burden.

Don’t listen to them if they say you’re “faking it.”

You know something is wrong. You know within yourself you are struggling.

The struggle is real. The stigma surrounding mental illness is real. I want you to know you are not alone in this struggle. You will never be alone.

Finding out you have a mental illness such as depression or anxiety can be terrifying. It can be so overwhelming and confusing. And it’s so much harder during the weeks or months before you’re diagnosed if no one believes your struggle is real.

Please never stop fighting. Be prepared to educate yourself and educate the people around you. You deserve to live a happy and fulfilled life filled with love, compassion, caring and understanding from the people around you and from yourself. Don’t let the people in your life put you down or make you feel like a burden.

If you have to stand on your own to fight this battle within yourself, please find the courage to do so. Never give up! You are worth the fight. You will never be alone in this fight with yourself.

Know when you do seek treatment, if you relapse or begin to struggle again, it’s OK. In order to “recover” there will be setbacks. There will be days you relapse or take one step forward and two steps back. Please don’t let this discourage you from reaching out for support.  

Reach out to someone if you are struggling. If you don’t receive the support you need from that person, reach out again. Please continue to reach out until you are heard.

Be brave.

On the days you find yourself feeling overwhelmed and worthless, just know you will always be one step ahead from where you initially started.

No matter how many times you struggle or “take a step back,” you are stronger and braver than you ever were before this journey began. 

The Mighty is asking the following: Write a love letter to another person with your disability, disease or mental illness. Check out our Submit a Story page for more about our submission guidelines.