Mental illness makes me unsuitable to have as a friend?

It's normal for people to back away from mental illness because they often don't understand it. The more we do to destigmatise mental illness, the better it will be for everyone. One of my best friends suffers from psychosis, depression and a couple of other illnesses. At times when we'd both been drinking heavily, he attempted to harm me. It doesn't affect how I feel about him, though. And for the past couple of years he's been completely teetotal and is probably the person I trust most and whose company I enjoy the most. In some ways, his illness has made him a more understanding person and a good person to be around. People in general don't know about his illness and he's universally well-liked. The sad thing is, I think some people would move away from him if they knew. Technically, I've been mentally ill too and still am. It's part of me, though, not the whole of me. I still am the same person people perceive.

I understand. I don't talk about my illness(es) to anybody except one of my best friends. I've never been in a situation where I've told someone and they ditch me because I only tell a select few, two to be exact. I started taking medication a few weeks ago and was nervous about picking it up, thinking the employees would be judging me for what I'm taking. It took me a couple weeks to tell my roommate/ex boyfriend what my doctor is treating me for. He's understanding. I still feel odd when I take my pills though. I feel like I'm being judged so I sneak them.

I told my dad but he tried to rationalize all of my symptoms. He doesn't get it.

I was at work a couple days ago and I was feeling really anxious/angry/stressed out/depressed and a girl I work with told me the new girl told her she thinks I'm rude, basically a bitch. That didn't help of course. I was ready to give up and leave and never come back. Not only do I have to deal with my emotions (which usually have no reason to be there in the first place) but I have to keep up a cheery fucking charade for everyone. My boss told me numerous times that day to smile. Well damn I can't when I could burst into tears at any moment and run out pissed off stressed out and suicidal. Damn it.

I have diagnosed mental illness too. I take medications which I think cover it up a lot. Ive learned not to tell anybody unless they ask. However I have lots of friends and can blend in well in social interaction. Ive been around a lot of other people with mental illness as well and what Ive noticed is offputting towards the "normies" isnt that their mentally ill, but that some of them can be whiny. Just dont be whiny and youll be fine.

What kind of mental illness are you even talking about?

You are not unsuitable as a friend because you are different, it is all fine as long as you do not attempt to harm others physically or psychologically. It is just this world that "everyone is normal and fine" and people believe that bull-crap. I can say that I'd rather have <odd> friends and friends with illnesses (not that I wish for illness) but in my experience , illness and hardships have certainly made me different and I do notice, but the friends I have really value my different way of seeing things. Sometimes it's just the pool of people, just give it time, those who really want to be your friend will show up eventually, even if they are a few. Because there are nice people, not so nice people, understanding and not very understanding people, people given into assumption and people who know assumption is really a stupid thing to consider. Best of luck mate, :)

I have depression but so do my friends, some are diagnosed others aren't. I've never hidden it from anyone if they avoid me because of it then they aren't worth it. As the old saying goes "just be you, those who matter don't mind and those that mind don't matter." I agree 100 percent with you that people aren't as compassionate about it as they make out to be.

There is a difference between secrecy and privacy. Choosing to keep health and other matters in your life private is not being secretive. It is your right as a person to keep what you like private and you should feel perfectly entitled to do so without self recrimination.

You need only tell anyone anything when you chose - which is wisely only when you feel safe, trusted and respected.

You have good insight into the fact that there are some people who can not be trusted. That is not your fault, nor are you doing anything wrong because it is none of their business.

I felt like that too but different reasons. I feel like I can't amount to anything in life because of ''mental illness'', and normal successful people don't ever seem to have that.maybe they hide it better, but i cant, people would still be my friend but even they laughed at it. so i couldn't keep friends because i cant fake it, i would be gone for months, and finally years. i can only put in the minimum. anyway I dont care about mental illness in a friendship. when i was in school i always went up to the loners, partly because there was no fear of rejection but also that i empathise with them, and most of the time they turn out to be most interesting to me and the best of friends...

Unless you're some crazy psychopath and I fear for my life, I'd much rather want to be there for you, support you, and cut you more slack on unusual behaviour.

Knowing something about you doesn't change who you are. There'd be no reason to end a friendship over something like this. People that don't accept you don't deserve to be your friends.

Having been there myself, I know exactly how you feel. I guess people are just afraid of what they can't understand. I just keep all of those things to myself, I figure that it's no one's business but my own. I hope you can find people who accept you, though.

The thing is, my shame runs so deep that I withheld the true nature of my illness in this story.

Depression is a large part of it but it's an effect of the main illness.

I have tried being open with a few users from this site, people that I felt I could trust, but have had similar negative results. I worry that if I were completely honest about it in my story, I would be recognized and further stigmatized. The people here who dislike me would use it as a weapon against me, as if it is something that makes me less human or more deserving of ridicule.

My illness makes me emotionally weak and people dislike weakness in others, therefore I am rejected or scorned by everyone.

If you have something like that, I think it's better to keep it between you and your close friends. Otherwise people will stigmatize you, no matter what you do.

That stinks. I've said before that I have issues but I don't tell people exactly what they are. Most of the people that know me have no idea what troubles lurk in my mind. Honestly, I feel some things are just better kept to yourself. It would be nice if people weren't so ignorant and judgmental about these things. I mean obviously we have self control enough to put on a happy face and hide it from the world. I still like to keep certain things to myself though. However you do find out who's a friend and who isn't when the news gets out, and that's not a bad thing, to get away from the ones who can't understand.