July 30, 2009
Road signs
Was driving around the other day and saw a billboard that made me think. I had to search around a little bit to find the website it linked to, but here it is. The sign I saw can be found in their “Print Public Service Announcement” area:
Just something to think about.
I’m a good friend of Stu’s, but I’m choosing to remain anonymous here because of the somewhat sensitive nature of this topic. Some of you will guess who I am, and that’s fine since it also means you probably know most of this history anyway.
A member of my family has a history of bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder. She has about one episode every year, either attempting suicide or otherwise needing to be admitted to the hospital. She had one such episode late in the evening about a week and a half ago, which escalated to the point where the paramedics had to be called. The arrival of an ambulance and fire truck inevitably woke the neighbors.
After the ambulance departed, one neighbor walked over to console the family. She had originally thought the ambulance was there for an elderly member of the family, but after our brief explanation to her that it was the teenager in the house with a history of mental illness, she said something like, “It’s so hard to be a teenager.” While I’m sure she had good intentions, her comment struck me as petty and trite, along the lines of the statements made in these PSA ads. It’s common for people to think about mental illness very differently than they do about heart disease, diabetes, etc., but the truth is that it’s an illness just like any other.
In this case, it has nothing whatsoever to do with being a teenager. My family member is faced with difficulties you and I never dreamed of when we were teenagers. She’s not just facing the normal stresses of teenage life; she’s facing an illness, a disease, not something she can just shake off or forget about.
Anyway, I just want to say thanks, Stu, for sharing these PSA ads. This is definitely a message that needs to reach more people.
Yes, it is something to think about. And it’s true.
The tv commercial that says where does it hurt? And then says everywhere. That’s true too. Real pain that pain pills can’t touch.