If someone doesn’t understand, rather than giving up on them as a person, educate them.

What kind of stigma did you experience/observe?

When I first started telling people that I was bipolar I didn’t get very helpful responses. They mostly consisted of ‘you’re a teenager. Mood swings happen to everyone’ and ‘but you have a great life. You can’t be depressed most of the time. When I told people about my eating disorder it was always just ‘you’re beautiful, don’t worry about it’ or ‘just eat more, then’. Of course, this didn’t help.

How did you overcome this experience?

It eventually got to the point where I gave the class and even a few teachers what depression, anxiety, bipolar, eating disorders etc. were. I explained how they interfere with your quality of life and not who you are as a person.

Help others by sharing a brief, positive message.

A little education goes a long way. If someone doesn’t understand, rather than giving up on them as a person, educate them. If they learn, they’ll understand better.