What Mental Illness Actually Looks like

„Remember that your mental health is a priority,

your inner peace is essential and your self-care is a necessity.“

• Cancelling plans at the last minute
• Believing you are a burden to everyone
• Eating all the time or not at all – Visible weight loss or weight gain
• Extreme and intense mood swings that last for hours or days
• Being overly emotional or being emotionally distant
• Constantly needing reassurance that you are still loved or haven‘t messed up
• Isolating yourself to „protect“ others/ you
• Frequent crying and meltdowns
• Having an outburst over something others may consider to be „small“
• Avoiding reality
• You pretend to be okay or happy
• Feeling incomplete and messed up
• Avoiding people and all sorts of social interaction
• Always feeling worried, stressed out and anxious
• Feeling constant sadness, unhappiness and emptiness on the inside
• Having sleep problems – either sleeping too much or too little
• Having trouble functioning properly in daily life
• Feeling worthless and extremely guilty almost all the time
• Drastic or even subtile changes in personality, thoughts and behavior
• You feel disconnected, nervous and detached from loved ones and friends.
• You frequently may have suicidal thoughts

Common Warning Signs Of Mental Illness

• Feeling very sad or withdrawn for more than two weeks
• Trying to harm or end one’s life or making plans to do so
• Severe, out-of-control, risk-taking behavior that causes harm to self and others
• Sudden overwhelming fear for no reason, sometimes with a racing heart, physical discomfort or difficulty breathing
• Significant weight loss or gain
• Seeing, hearing or believing things that aren’t real
• Excessive use of alcohol or drugs
• Drastic changes in mood, behavior, personality or sleeping habits
• Extreme difficulty concentrating or staying still
• Intense worries or fears that get in the way of daily activities
• Withdrawal from friends and activities
• Sex drive changes
• Inability to cope with daily problems or stress

„I‘m so proud of you. I‘m proud that you keep showing up, every single day. I‘m proud of all the tough decisions you had to make and that even though it was hard, you stood your ground. I‘m proud that you never gave up on yourself and kept fighting for everything you love. I‘m proud that despite everything you‘ve been through, you still wake up and find ways to smile every day. I‘m proud that even though you‘ve seen so much darkness, you always continue to search for the light. I‘m proud of you and how far you‘ve come, and i‘m even more excited for everything that‘s still to come.“

PLEASE BE PATIENT AND TRY TO UNDERSTAND – NOT JUDGE.

WE ARE DOING THE BEST WE CAN.

Raise Awareness – End The Stigma