AIBU to feel upset by my parents' views on mental illness

I think you are eavesdropping and so unable to drill down into what they actually meant. It sounds like they were talking about violent unstable dangerous people with psychological problems and you have extrapolated that to mean all people with psychological problems should be locked up? I doubt even if they were saying the latter they really meant it. I suspect they don’t have the vocabulary or the understanding to qualify their statements. Why not talk to them about it?

Those with mental ill health are more of a danger to themselves then others!

I have bipolar and this is such a difficult read- not your fault but makes me realise there is still stigma
my parents are older and have never taken time to understand or support me with my mental health. I often wonder how different it would be if I had a severe physical illness. I try to be open about my mental health but have been stigmatised including at an old job ten years ago when diagnosed, I disclosed it and they stopped me from doing much of my job because they were not sure if I could do it. Never forgotten this. You are not being unreasonable

I would assume it was in response to the woman who stabbed people in Covent Garden yesterday, and that what they actually meant was someone meeting her (presumed) profile, that of a homeless person with an uncontrolled, serious MH condition and possibly all kinds of comorbidities. Not someone with depression, PND etc, or managing a serious condition well, with medication etc.

It wasn't a woman who stabbed 4 men....

A woman with mental illness has just yesterday stabbed 4 men in London. Recently a man with mental issues threw a 3 year old into some alligators. Calocane is all over the news for it having been missed that he should have been locked up and Rudikabane is now in Broadmoor.

Your parents have a point.

My father can be like this, and there has been a person with serious mental health illnesses in our family - all under control now and well thank goodness. He still doesn’t quite get it, but certainly when the crisis was going on, he did everything he could to support.

Personally, unless you are all dealing with a mental health crisis, and they need to step up and be helpful in someway, I wouldn’t get angry about something that is hypothetical. Mental health is a very broad category and difficult for most people to grasp. Your, what might be considered, overly sympathetic view of things would be disagreed with by the parents of the two university students killed by the bloke in Newcastle with schizophrenia who shouldn’t have been let out. Equally a view of everyone should be locked up is also stupid.

Don’t look to have a fight where there is none to be had. Unless of course you’re really bored.

And this is the exact reason my family have no idea i have bipolar or bpd

Are you sure they weren’t just discussing how ‘care in the community’ isn’t working? And how people are just ending up on the streets and/or addicted to drugs as simply a way to save the government money and to place the responsibility on people that have zero training, and little understanding of the complex care needs that trained, educated and experienced mental health staff have.
It’s just not helping anyone, the carers, family and friends and principally, the very ill people that need it.

ETA: It’s not a popular opinion but I think we need to bring back a new sort of institution/residential care as this simply isn’t working.