Dear Person With a Mental Illness

Dear person with a mental illness,

You feel alone and empty. Sad and angry. You feel so many feelings, I can’t even name them all. It’s not always easy to be you. It’s no easy life. I want to tell you: You can do it. I want to hug you and tell you that you’re worth it. That you are strong.

You are not useless. I know you feel like that. You are not damaged or broken. I know that’s how your body and your mind feel. You are not a failure. I know you think about yourself like that. You are not a monster. I know that’s what you see when you look in the mirror. Instead, I want to tell you what you really are. You are a warrior. You are a fighter. You are a survivor.

And you are loved by so many people — it can just be hard to see when you’re stuck in your own hole of darkness, emptiness and sadness. They are there for you. You just need to take a look around.

You are worth it. You are a unique, wonderful, beautiful, intelligent, curious, kind, smart and an inspiring human being. You deserve a good life. You are a winner. Your world is full of light and darkness. And that’s OK! That’s just the way your are and I’m fine with that.

You are a person filled with light and darkness, black and white, happiness and sadness. This doesn’t mean you’re broken, damaged or split. I know you feel like that, but please, stop it. It’s not your fault.

People treat you differently as soon as they hear the words “mental Illness.” They change, but please, stop thinking that’s your fault. It‘s not even your problem. Forget about them. They are not worth it. You are! Say goodbye to them and never look back. They don‘t deserve your kindness, wonderfulness and uniqueness. They just don’t deserve you. You are better than them.

I know you feel like you’re not strong enough. Believe me, mental illness has nothing to do with strength. You are not weak just because you have to deal with that. It rather means you are so strong. You are still alive, aren’t you? I love you for being so strong and brave. I’m thankful for you being strong enough to stay alive.

We are all humans. We make mistakes. This doesn’t depend on whether you have mental illness or not. Forgive yourself for the things you’ve done or never did. Forgive yourself for everything. You don’t need the shame.  You don’t need the regrets and the sorrow. Forget them. We all make mistakes and that’s OK.

You are a dreamer. You can create stories from out of nothing. You can fill hours and hours with tales you just excogitated. You are creative, a dancer, a singer. You are special. You are great. Never forget that.

I know how you feel. I am you. You are me.

It’s not easy for me to write this down. I know tomorrow you won’t listen anymore. Tomorrow, you won’t see it this way, but I have to write it down for you. Maybe you will listen someday. I write this down for you, my dear. Maybe you can read it when you’re down or when you’re broken. Maybe it helps you out, I don’t know.

I hope I’ll come back soon. I want to give you the strength you need to carry on. Please, never forget you don‘t need to carry the world on your shoulders. You deserve breaks. You deserve a good life. You deserve the good things that happen to you. You are great the way you are. You are loved. I love you, and I will always be there, somewhere inside. Just don‘t forget me.

Be you, my love. Laugh and love. Cry and scream. Be silly and ridiculous. Listen to music and dance on the floor as wildly as you can. Jump and run. Swear if you need to. Watch silly films and television shows. Climb on woods.

Read books. Or even better: finally write your books! They are already hidden inside of you. Write your songs down and sing them as loud as you can! Dance to your own kind of music. Be your own kind and never feel guilty for it. Take the time you need. Take the healing you need, and never ever ever feel guilty. Never!

You are not alone. We will stand this together. We can lean on each other.

Love,
Yourself

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