Hi all,

I hear you and feel for you...making the choice to tell someone (whether family member or friend) is a difficult one, but for me the burden of keeping a secret about who I am (illness and all) was keeping me further within my shell. I've been in this shell since I was first diagnosed (about six months ago, a year and a half before that I was wrongly diagnosed with depression). My current pdoc is great, and he has told me that I don't have to tell friends or family if I don't want to...I live with my parents right now and they feel the same way. But I want to move forward in life, I want to get back into the workforce now that I am recovering and get on with life and without support from "normal" friends who care about me, it's really quite lonely. I've told three friends so far, an old friend from school and two newer friends and so far, they have shown me nothing but support. I reckon I'm more guarded because of my fears about facing the stigma (it's easier telling people you get occasionally stressed or depressed). So to the rest of my friends and family, I'll be exactly that. I just think that you have to draw the line somewhere, because there will always be people who treat you differently or that you are somehow "defective" because you have a mental illness. So, I'd say only tell people who care about you and who only matter in your life.