#TeamNotAshamedMY

MINDA and RELATE are collaborating for #TeamNotAshamedMY

 

What is Team Not Ashamed about?

People with mental health conditions often feel ashamed for being ill. They are afraid that they would be ostracised, feared and rejected by society, family and friends. Many of them have trouble finding or holding on to jobs once employers find out about their mental health history.

Imagine having an illness which resulted in your right leg being amputated. You need treatment for the wound and physiotherapy to learn to walk again. You need all the social support you can get to adjust to this new life as an amputee. Now imagine doing all of this in secret. Pretending that you are not hurting, that you are not being treated and trying to do your best to walk as if you are not physically disabled. Imagine feeling guilty for having your right leg amputated because you were too weak to prevent yourself from falling ill.

That is the experience of many people with a mental health condition. They are told that they need to get over it, to just stop being sad or to not worry about silly things. They are told that people with mental health conditions are unstable and dangerous. So they hide their illness, they hide their treatment and they pretend that they are doing perfectly fine. Some of them do not seek treatment at all because people finding out that they have a mental health condition. They feel guilty and ashamed for being ill.

"I kept meeting service members and military spouses who were hesitant to ask for help because they thought they should be able to handle it themselves or that seeking help meant they were weak or broken. But of course that couldn’t be further from the truth. Our service members, veterans and their families are some of the most courageous, resilient folks I have ever met, and asking for help is always a sign of strength. Mental illnesses are just like physical illnesses and deserve the same kind of care and compassion." Michelle Obama

So let's stand with people with mental health conditions and remind them and ourselves that they do not need to be ashamed. Illness is not weakness. There is no shame in being ill.

Here is what we need you to do:

Step 1: Take a picture of you holding up a sign that says #ImNotAshamed  @RelateMalaysia @MindaKami

Step 2: Tweet, Facebook or Instagram your pictures with the hashtags #TeamNotAshamedMY and #ImNotAshamed.

Step 3: Facebook and Twitter: Tag us @mindakami and @relatemalaysia

You can share your mental health condition if you want, or not. It’s up to you.

It can be in any language you want. After all, kita orang Malaysia! Our multicultural society is what makes Malaysia Boleh!

Best of all: You don't need to have a mental illness to participate!

Let’s stand up against stigma and unite for mental health.