Ex-Norwegian Prime Minister

[Bill]

I was watching Newsnight tonight and this ex-prime minister was being interviewed. Don't ask me to remember his name because I wouldn't know where to start!....all I remember was he was Norwegian!

Anyway.....he was very open and speaking frankly about his depression episode. By the way, I remember hearing that Winston Churchill also suffered depression and he called it his "black dog".

Anyway......this ex-prime minister was saying he had to resign his post but when he did, he announced to the population that it was due to depression.

He said that the way to get better is to "talk to someone" and Never bottle it! He seeked help from his family and professionals, and he also received thousands of letters from people who said they could understand how he felt.

He added that there is a stigma attached to all types of mental health issues when there shouldn't be. Why should someone with mental health issues be treated any differently from someone with a broken leg? (Something I always used to say myself). Jeremy Paxman suggested that some people don't understand because of the fear of the unknown!? It can't be seen so it's harder to understand. The ex-prime minister said that talking about mental health should be "normalised".

At the end of the interview he said with the help he received he got better and was then re-elected for a further 5 years before he retired.

I agreed with everything he said and thought to myself, maybe Norway is the place to live!

(Forgive the emoticons....just wanted to try some out!)

[sarajane]

Hi Bill,
One of Australia's premiers I think it was Victoria's one, resigned because of depression, now he is the boss of www.beyondblue.org.au a web site in australia for depression. (Shhhhhh don't tell anyone - but ur site is better) Any way I totally agree with you about speaking out.

Love SJ

[lesleyB]

Yes I agree about telling people, I tried to keep it from my friends and husband but after I broke down and told them I got so much support. I think we feel ashamed and scared of being called weak, but it is an illness and as you say if we had a broken leg we get loads of sympathy.
Lesleyb

[Lilith1980]

I dont think I feel ashamed of my illness as such, but I wouldnt tell most people about it because I would be worried about their reaction. Will they think I am nuts etc...? Or is this contradictory? Maybe I do have an element of shame then.

But I guess, what does it matter what they think? I reckon their knowledge on the subject would partly determine their reaction. I know I am not crazy.

My counsellor asked me on Saturday how I feel the counselling is going and I really feel its helping me unravel my feelings. I can talk to him about things because he understands. Other people I have spoken to just look at me bewildered.....my Mum doesn't really understand. She has always thought I "worry too much" but its more than just worry.

I am talking more to my boyfriend now if/when I feel anxious. Instead of flying off the handle I am talking to him. Its very hard to control my temper sometimes and its not because of what he's done, its because I have allowed the feelings to bottle up over a couple of days and its hard to control the tidal-wave of words and feelings.

I need to keep talking though and also learn not to bottle things up xxxxx

[Bill]

It Is sad that more people aren't understanding and some people never will no matter how much we try to educate them.

I do sense though that attitudes are changing and it is becoming easier to find people who do understand, even in just the past few years because of the Net and sites like these. It's because of what Nicola's created that so many us now talking together and not feeling so alone. It's a huge credit to Nicola and her team for all their time and effort they've put in to help people.

I think in the old days people were brought up with the stiff upper lip so anxiety was bottled and put under the carpet. People just wouldn't talk about it for fear of ridicule and worse! Perhaps that's where the stigma originated?

If we bottle things up, then at some point the hurt and pain we're keeping inside Will affect us. These trapped feelings will create us stress which could make us self harm or will cause worse anxiety symptoms such as panics. We'll get depressed and irritable so that we'll explode when something hits a nerve and pushes us over the edge. So often I used to feel I wanted to kick a brick wall down or release my pain by self harming.

It's so important to let these feeling out by talking and crying. We may not feel better at the time but gradually the release benefits us so that we come out feeling stronger over time.

One problem though is it's often the people who we feel closest to who we feel we should be able to talk to such as family members, who often make us feel worse, perhaps because they're simply "too" close so don't view us a "person". I'm not sure.

My mother used to say to me that friends are often closer to us than family often because of clashes of personality and frictions families naturally create. I know that I can talk to people on here much more open and freely than I do my family which is why I miss my father so much because I felt he was the only one who truly understood me.

We do need to make people more aware and so I share my experiences with people who ask. If I get a negative response, then I don't share again. One benefit of sharing is that we at least find out who we can turn to when we're in need of help. If we do continue to try to share with the wrong people then we will do more harm to ourselves because they'll re-inforce our low opinions of ourselves. It's best to walk away and ignore them because they're not worth listening to.

I admired this Norwegian prime minister for speaking so openly and maybe that's why he got re-elected because he came across as being human and genuine.

[artistguy]

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Yes folks, all these famous people suffered from anxieties and depressions. So, we are all in good company.

[pooh]

a little note of humour...if no one minds? I've always blamed my depression on an artistic temprament, and since I've managed to get two poems published and sold several portraits.....get my name on the list above..lol I have always been open about any problems , since I use taxis often, most drivers knew not to drive me over a particular bridge in my home town for a while and they knew the reason why. I talk to family, friends and my son in an age appropriate way. There is one exception to this however.....that's the work place. I have never had a job in which I have felt it would be ok to say Hey! you know what, I've been diagnosed with clinical depression, I suffer from anxiety and panic.I take medication and there are some days I just can't cope. But I've never been absent and I've never been late and you tell me I'm great at my job. All of this I believe would be instantly dismissed.
Michael Moore in 'Sicko' suggests that Norway just might be Utopia., the more I hear the more I want to move there. In the meantime I believe its essential to, if you can, build a support network of people in your life who do understand without judgement.