Cute Because You're Psycho? | Mental Health

As there is more and more awareness being brought to the topic of mental health, I sometimes question whether people are understanding the issue for what it really is.

Why?

I feel as though, in recent years, many people have seen the publicity around the subject through TV series such as Skins, photos on Tumblr, 'pro ana' and 'pro mia' forums, and just a general deluded idea that it's cute and 'mysterious' to suffer. 

 It's sad, because I have experienced and witnessed so many people doing this, I begin to doubt whether some people are genuinely ill. And I don't like that because I know what it's like to suffer and be doubted at the same time. But it shouldn't have to be like that. People with genuine issues shouldn't have to suffer for the sake of a few sad souls wanting a bit of extra attention. These people are the cause of all the negative connotations surrounding mental illness.

I've written this post to vent a bit of frustration. Because, as I have experienced worsening symptoms of PTSD recently, it really has been getting to me. Why should I have to be stigmatised and not be taken seriously with a genuine problem because there are people who are sad enough to fake a serious problem, because they think it's trendy? 

One of the main things that bugs me is this whole 'psycho girlfriend' trend. Why are you using this word as a positive adjective, when it describes someone with psychosis? Psychosis is a severe disorder which involves the sufferer to have deluded thoughts and lose touch with reality. It ends lives. Is it cool now? Do you still want to disrespectfully broadcast all over Facebook that you have an illness which results with 1 in 25 of the sufferers committing suicide? I really hope not. 

You do not look funny. You do not look smart. You look like a shallow, shameless tit. 

Although I feel the series addressed issues such as anxiety, Asperger's, anorexia, psychosis and post traumatic stress disorder adequately, I frequently see people posting GIFS and quotes from Skins, particularly centred around the characters Cassie and Effie. Because they're pretty. And obviously, to be pretty like them, and mysterious like them, you've got to have the same symptoms. Am I right?

 WAKE UP. These are fictional characters. Although I feel the symptoms were researched well, I DESPISE the way the characters were portrayed. Effie having jollies, acting all mysterious with her drugs at raves with a hint of depression. Cassie being described as 'cute' because of the way she rambles when in fact she is delusional. The directors and producers made mental illness look cool and even artistic rather than hard hitting. 

 I understand if people with genuine issues like to relate to the series and see it as beneficial, but I have witnessed first-hand people trying to act like these characters and re-blogging these references like mad because they make themselves, as individuals, look more 'edgy'. Or even, more selfishly, making their page look a little 'individual'.

And does anyone remember during The Big Bang Theory when Raj told his love interest that he found her general anxiety disorder 'attractive' and 'charming'. NO. It is debilitating. It makes me think irrationally, it makes me physically ill. I get paranoid. I am reluctant to leave the house. 

 I have been told that my anxiety makes me cute because I am reserved and 'polite'. This makes me feel sick because in actually fact I am quiet and reserved because I'm so paranoid I will be judged, hurt or make myself look like a dick. Why is this issue appealing to you? Do you actually like the fact that social conventions are nauseating for me? Please do some research, because there is a massive difference between loving and accepting someone for who they are, and admiring someone because of an illness that makes them feel like they're being followed by a massive black cloud. 

It's insulting that someone would want something sufferers are so desperate to resolve and get rid of. All of this lying and romanticisation makes me question whether people actually understand whether people know it's a real thing, or just a fantasy that is completely acceptable to conjure up and apply to themselves without offending real people who have to suffer in silence. Trust me, if you have experienced an issue like this and you had a choice, you would choose not to experience mental health issues. 

 People also diagnose themselves and use illnesses as ridiculous hyperbole's and adjectives.

"I have OCD because I love to tidy up"...No, obsessive compulsive disorder are severe obsessions and compulsions which take people away from living their lives. It makes people severely anxious. 

"No one can come on a night out I'm so depressed omg"...Again, no. Yeah it's shit that sometimes no one is available to have fun but a disease of the mind doesn't suddenly wash over you because of such minuscule problems, and then magically disappear the next day. 

"If I don't get an A I will kill myself"...Someone has actually said this in front of me at college and I was so mad but had to bite my tongue. I wish I didn't. What an extreme thing to say. Grades are fixable, the state of your mind isn't as simple. 

You might see it as a joke, but again it is deeply offensive. One in four people suffer from mental illnesses so you don't know who you're affecting

Online tests, too. People literally go by these and try to convince everyone they're 'losing the plot', yet they refuse to see a health professional. Word of advice. Doctors do not create these sites and tests. You are better off Googling symptoms and looking on NHS Choices, and seeing a doctor if you can relate to them or have any concerns. 

Finally, people with mental health issues are also culprits in this matter. Sharing posts like the one above. It makes you look like you're letting your illness define who you are, which is what we can't do. We are supposed to help each other recover.

 Also, it makes it acceptable for other people to do and again...continues to offend people who are going through a really crap period. I understand sometimes you need to make light of certain situations but there are ways of going about it. 

 More Issues than Vogue? What, are you like a fashion statement and 'vogue' because you're ill? That makes it sound almost as if it's glamorous and it really isn't. I personally don't see experiencing hallucinations, panic attacks and self harm as 'glamorous'. Yeah, I'm not going to beat myself down because of these symptoms and decrease myself value, but I don't see it as an exception to make yourself look fashionable. Because it's like you want it to be trendy. These illnesses shouldn't be trending and I would not wish them on anyone so please don't try it.

I hope this has been an insightful post for you. If you see anyone try and romanticise these horrible illnesses, stop them right there in their tracks and educate them. It may help smash the stigma we have to face. 

Grace xo