Mental Illnesses and Family
When you or someone in your family has a mental illness, it can cause stress and worry for everyone. It can affect everyone. Some types of illness can cause big changes in the familys routines, activities and finances. Different people in your family will react differently to these changes.
Things slowly start to change due to the changes in the behavior of you or other person. Sometimes, you may question why these changes occuring and one may not be able to explain it. Many will assume that one is difficult to deal with but the reality is the person himself don't know why all these happening. It keeps going until one get diagnosed with one of the mental illnesses.
After recognising many think that it is a relief that one know what he is suffering from and why there are changes in behavioral patterns but a big question wait for you to answer, "Now What's Next?"
Learning and knowing about mental health and illnesses is helpful but it doesn't actually provide a blueprint of how to handle your relationship with someone with mental illness. Most of the times, you unable to bear the behavioral changes of other person and try to match the anger as of other. You may not be understanding with them and finding his behaviour as an action of his and not due to mental illness. It is tough for one to stay calm while other person has these outbursts.
It causes distance in your relationship with them and prevent us from having the relationship that you want to have. Actually, mental Illness is something that most people dont like to talk about. It makes one uncomfortable to hear and talk about it openly and as a result whose who suffering from mental illness not encouraged to do one thing that may at some extent relief them.. Talk about it.
I think it is easier for one to say about having diabetes, heart attack, fever than about a mental illness. Because in medical illness, others try to sympathize while in mental illness, many don't know how to react to it and most of the times try to change the subject. And, for this reason, most people with mental illness stay quiet about it and not feel comfortable to open about it with others. Because they believe that when own people not ready to listen them, then how can they expect that others (strangers) will listen and understand them. They feel scared to be judged.
Well, as long as we do not change how we view mental illness and people, it seems difficult to understand and comfort someone. To do it, we do need to start viewing people as people at first place like us and illness as secondary. Because viewing it together will add it as stigma and suffering will continue.
To figure out your relationship with one, you need to take one step at a time. If you are aware about one who is suffering from mental illness, reach out to them, encourage them to talk about it openly and break the ice to overcome the stigma associated with different mental illnesses.
You have no idea how powerful simple listening have. It acts as healer and encourager for one.
So, we're in May- Month of Mental Health Awareness and I do request everyone to pause, focus on your family members and your relationship with them, If you or they have a mental health issue, encourage yourself and them to talk about it openly. Let's educate, share and overcome these stigmas to create a better and strong relationships we're in.
Do share your thoughts about this post in comments. Waiting to hear you!! 
Tagging you to have your valuable thoughts. Thank you!!
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@ASilentObserver Hi Obs! :) How are you? I hope you are having a great week so far! <3 This post is so important as it is not easy to be affected such a problem and deal with it alone. For me, it was not easy to come to tell my family, and I still have not told all of them. They do not believe that such things exist. The only ones who understand and support me are my mother, husband, and friends. It is not easy, but it feels better to tell others about what you are dealing with rather than keeping it inside and causing yourself more stress, anxiety, and more. <3
@SaimaK You're right that does make it more difficult when they don't believe in mental illnesses but when you are able to share with others it does feel like a weight off your shoulders
@ninetaleslove Yes, exactly! You are so spot on! Thank you! <3 I hope you are doing well! :) <3
I agree this is so important to us all 
As someone struggling with both mental and physical illnesses it definitely has a huge impact on relationships and I'm still trying to accept it myself and share it with family. My boyfriend has been very supportive and over time has learned to better understand how severe my anxiety is and how it affects my health but it doesn't mean every day is easy. There are always going to be moments or even days where it's much harder to to explain what's going on when I'm struggling to figure it out myself. It's so important to listen to those in your relationships when they confide in you about their mental health as well. We may all be on our own paths but we can encourage and support each other
@ASilentObserver I suffer from MMD and CPTSD and struggle with being a quiet borderline, I would like my loved ones to get I am working so hard just to be most days but they see me as weak when i have trouble doing daily tasks and dealing with daily stress, we need to see people who are suffering with mental illness as strong as cancer survivors and instead of treating us as weaklings treat us as the true survivors we really are.
@teleah70
This is beautiful 💕. You are the strongest person I met today, and I am not gonna let this day go to waste, worrying about what other people think of me. Thabk you
Why among my siblings, I am the only one affected abused by my narcissistic father?
