When is it time to let go of your friend who has a severe mental illness?
If you are getting hurt by them, physically or emotionally, it's okay to step away for your own health. If they are not seeking help in a situation where they cannot manage it, or they they continuously refuse yours you can, again, feel free to step away. If you begin to resent or hate them, and think you might hurt them, step away.You’re friends with them because you love something about them. It’s a sign of a good friend and a healthy relationship no only enjoy good with a person, but to also help someone through the bad. If anything compromises either of your abilities to do this and keep as healthy as possible, than a less intimate relationship, a more polite distance, or complete removal of contact is probably for the best.Think it over, talk to your friend about what you can both do to improve your relationship if it is strained, and use your judgement to decide which course of action you need to take.
Does anyone have a partner with some illness (mental/physical)?
My wife suffers from myotonic muscular dystrophy. She's almost fully functional but she can't jump, she has problems going up and down stairs, she has trouble grasping and pulling on certain car doors, she has irritable bowel syndrome because of the MMD, she falls every time she loses her balance, and of course she's "weaker" than women her age who aren't afflicted with this disease. It's possible that she may be wheelchair-bound someday (she was the last time we went to Disney World on vacation -- she can't walk very far without getting tired either) Is it a problem? Nope. I have to help her with certain things and she has to be careful not to lose her balance, but that doesn't change the way I feel about her. When we first met she told me she had MMD, thinking I might get scared off right away, but my reply was "You'll have to do better than that -- my first wife was completely healthy and was killed in a car accident, so I don't make decisions on what might happen because we have no guarantees in life anyway." She was FLOORED. Every other boyfriend she ever had either had reservations about her MMD or flat out told her they couldn't handle it. What wimps! Our friends and family don't have a problem with it, and I find that most people are very understanding when it comes to her condition. I imagine it may be different for you because your fiancee has a mental affliction, but it doesn't change who he is or the fact that you love him, right? If other people can't understand that or can't deal with it, that's their problem.
Do people with diseases deserve more respect than people with mental illnesses?
No I don't believe that is fair. I have Lupus and people are so sympathetic towards me in that situation, however I also suffer from depression that years ago was totally debilitating and I often found that people's opinions were along the lines of, "just get out of the house, you will feel better" or "give it time you will get over it" and even "it's not that bad, it's not like you have cancer, then you would really have something to worry about". Well I did have something to worry about, my depression almost cost me my life. People are still generally quite intolerant of Mental Illness and sometimes ignorant of the cause and the extreme depths it can reach. They seem to feel that it's in your control, well depression at least. It's a very sad situation. Another reason that coping with a Mental Illness is so hard and requires more understanding is what you have yourself stated, it seems less acceptable and life threatening.
Can mental illness be cured?
yes, contrary to popular belief mental illness can be cured. after 19 yrs on medication, i am now med free & doing fine so far. what was the cure? i did something i had never done before - asked god to heal me. who would ever figure this would happen to me but i believed it would happen and it did. you see i just figured that miracles happened in the bible back in the day, so why can't they still happen today? the answer is they can! i am still in a phase of disbelief myself. but the freedom from those chains being broken and being made whole again is so incredibly liberating. for all the naysayers out there (& there will be plenty I'm sure), i don't care what you think! i'm sorry you are missing out on miracles in your life. thanks be to god for blessing and healing me! so to answer your question - please don't resign yourself to accepting this state of brokeness as permanent. it does not have to be this way. may god bless your friend too. prayer is more powerful than a man with a psychiatry degree or anything in a pill bottle.
Why do people not understand mental illness?
I'm bipolar I have severe depression angrier issues paranoid schizophrenia ocd social and regular anxiety etc....Its honestly really bad....Why do people not understand this? I hear this all the time.. "Your depressed because you dont do anything." "You seem and look fine. How can anything be wrong with you" "If I can get through life, so can you." "Theres no reason for you to feel like this." "You have a good life" And comments similar to this. I constantly lose friends because of it.. The only person who understand is my mom.