The American Psychiatric Association says that “Mental illnesses are health conditions involving changes in emotion, thinking or behavior (or a combination of these). Mental illnesses are associated with distress and/or problems functioning in social, work or family activities.” They also say that “Mental illness is nothing to be ashamed of. It is a medical problem, just like heart disease or diabetes.”
The intensity of mental health conditions varies from person to person. Some people have milder cases and are able to go about without their monsters seriously inhibiting their day-to-day life, and some people’s monsters are so intense that the individual may have to visit the hospital to get the care they need.
No matter the intensity, all people who suffer from mental illness are valid in their diagnoses and equally deserve help in getting their monsters under control since they won’t be moving out any time soon.
