For some reason I don't understand, mental health issues make people intensely uncomfortable. People would rather talk about any number of gruesome illnesses than to spend five minutes trying to relate to someone with a mental illness. The same goes for getting any empathy; most people are ultra kind and empathetic towards someone they know has a bad physical illness, but if you are suffering from something as debilitating as depression or bipolar, you really cannot expect the same level of caring.