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Miriam Rachel

When you are dealing with mental illness like depression, it is easy to become very emotional over it. After being diagnosed with a mental illness, it can be damage your self esteem even more because of the stigma attached to it. Unfortunately, mental illness has been associated with being labelled as “crazy”, “nuts”,”cuckoo”, you name it. These illnesses are very real and are not taken as seriously as they need to be taken. There is more awareness about mental health, and there is more acceptance. However, we are still a long way from taking depression as seriously as cancer. Not being taken seriously about your mental illness is also very stressful and can ruin your self esteem even more. Sadly there will be a lot of ignorance around, no matter how hard you try to advocate for yourself or for someone you care for with a mental illness.

There are a lot of helpful articles that contain helpful information about how to manage mental illnesses such as depression or anxiety, without relying on medication. I am going to have to throw in there, developing a sense of humor around mental health is not only okay but it’s therapeutic.

I know it may seem counter-intuitive, however laughing at it may help you cope with it better. If you have a friend who also deals with a mental illness, joke about it together. Laugh about the funniest moments you had during therapy sessions. Call yourself “crazy” or “cuckoo” in a joking manner. It lights a lot up.

However, if you don’t have a mental illness, then you have no right to joke about it. That is insulting to those who do have it, and it feeds even more into the stigma.

However, instead of crying about getting a depression diagnosis, find humor in it. Life is too hard and too short to not laugh.


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