I tend not to think of myself as mentally ill, although I do have recurrent depression. However, when someone starts talking down about the mentally ill, the "nuts", "crazy people" etc, I usually count myself among them and explain about my diagnosis. This usually takes them aback, since I function just fine. I get a bit of shock, then pause, and then hopefully, the person re-thinks their negative stereotype about people with mental illness.

Depends on the situation of course...

gg