To hate the "Mental Health" brigade.

[IAKnowyou]

It is becoming increasingly clear that many people do not know how to articulate a sentence. Especially on social media.
I am seeing - more and more, people claiming they "suffer from mental health".
Of course you bloody do. Everybody has "mental health"!! What you mean is that you have BAD mental health! That you are struggling WITH your mental health.
Some of the common phrases I DESPISE are as follows :
"I have/ I've got mental health"
"If you suffer from mental health..."
"He/She/They have got mental health"
"Mental Health can happen to anyone"
"I have severe mental health"
Just add a little something to the end such as "issues, problems, struggles" and you'll be good. But PLEASE for the love of god, learn to speak properly !!

You will never be 100% free from anxiety - it’s a normal human feeling everyone gets. Some are able to manage it and others get overwhelmed by it but being anxious is normal.

Yes. And that just trivialises and marginalises more serious mental illness - as though its "something we all have to deal with".

I've seen some people online use "mental illness" as an insult. To these people, having 'mental illness' is seen as being 'clinically insane', 'crazy', 'delusional', 'psychotic', etc or something to be ashamed of or made fun of. Therefore, what these "mentally ill" people are saying is of little worth. That's part of the stigma I think.

Feeling anxious is normal and everyone can feel temporarily anxious about something at some point in their life.

Having an anxiety disorder isn't 'normal', it's a permanent state of anxiety and not everyone has it. It's an illness which can also trigger some physical illness, temporarily or permanently.

My mental health issues are stated under the umbrella of " my mental health is shit!"

I find it annoying when people state they "have a bit of Ocd". No you freaking don't! There is no such thing as 'a bit'. You either have it or you don't.

That resonates with me! I am (slightly) inconvenienced daily by having to complete rituals in the right order (my dog thoroughly approves - she likes predictability) and check and re-check things that don't need checking at all. But I have met people with OCD, and I really, really don't have OCD!

Ah okay so it's more about intelligence & level of education. They might be using the only language they have to describe what's happening.

I am admittedly a lot more articulate than a lot of people with schizophrenia so I'm allowed to speak about it but other people who are less intelligent aren't?!

You are coming across as unpleasant & ignorant.

I know what you mean and it has irritated me in the past. But I also know what THEY mean, so I just let it go now. On the other hand, I get tired of hearing people blaming their 'mental health' when they're just going through normal things in life - bereavement, worry, stress etc.

I don't think getting irritated by it being phrased wrong is kicking people while they're down as it's not limited to people who are struggling. This is often posted about people, by other people, and doesn't make sense at all.

I just don't get why people aren't allowed to be annoyed by things like this. Oh shall we just get rid of all proof readers and editors as it just doesn't matter how things are written, oh and all lawyers as nobody would need anything clearly and carefully worded to make sure it makes sense. It's all ok as long as we think we might know what someone means.

It all arrived along with 'should of' ... this is the leader of the pack and the rest followed

I think it's an unintended consequence, mental health should be seen as similar to physical health, there shouldn't be shame or stigma around mental health issues. Unfortunately getting across nuanced information to a very large number of people is extremely difficult.

Also see; 'He's got a temperature.'

Nah, that’s an established idiom, surely?

@Serencwtch No, it's neither of those things either.
It doesn't matter what level of education or intellect you have. I have heard and seen people from all walks of life speak like this.
If you are not articulate for whatever reason, obviously there's no way around it other than correction.
But some people really have no excuse to not use correct language.

That's not berating people for their lack of education. It's being annoyed by improper use of language, which is perfectly okay. It certainly does not mean a person is unpleasant. Everybody is allowed their bug bears.

My believe is if people are looking to improve their mental health, just like with physical health, sometimes simple things like adding more health foods to your diet or focusing on self-care can make a difference.

People say some funny things in the NHS. A lot of my patients have prostrate disease apparently. I have visions of all these men lying on the floor on their faces 😂

Totally get where you're coming from — words do matter!
But not everyone knows how to say things the “right” way when they’re struggling.
A little kindness in correction can go a long way. 💛

If someone is able to share that they are struggling then they should be praised rather than shamed for whatever wording they decide to use.

I also work in Mental Health, we’re not all awful.

Gets on my nerves too.

Same with 'I don't believe in.....' vaccines, abortion etc.

No, you disagree with a certain practice. These things definitely exist, it's not like God or ghosts or something.

With even teachers calling the Easter holidays, ‘half-term’, we can give up hope now!

Now that does get on my nerves!

I'm going through a bad time at present with bereavement so I don't think badly of myself for reaching out to a talking therapy. Might work, maybe it won't.

I think you should reach out though if you need help processing.