1 in 5 Americans Struggle with Mental Health - Why Their Challenges Can Be Superpowers

LAS VEGAS, Oct. 1, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Many people find talking about mental health issues difficult, much harder than talking about a broken leg, diabetes or other common medical condition. One consequence of that silence is that the 43.8 million Americans who struggle with mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, ADHD, OCD or bipolar disorders are made to feel like they are less than normal.

That is why during October, Mental Health Awareness Month, author Brett Francis wants people to reframe the way they view their diseases. She says, "These people are not broken. Their diseases are not their fault and there is no need for them to feel so alone." In fact, Francis says instead of liabilities, mental health disorders can be viewed as invisible superpowers.

Francis, who is the author of Not Broken: How to Overcome Mental Health Challenges and Unlock Your Full Potential, speaks from personal experience. She has Tourette's syndrome, severe ADHD, anxiety, OCD and panic disorder. She has also been in abusive relationships, was bullied, raped and attempted suicide. Yet she has come to view her mental health challenges as opportunities that have positively impacted her life and wants other people to view their challenges in a similar light.

According to Francis:

• Tourette's has made her more sympathetic to other people's problems
• Anxiety has given her great passion and a drive to achieve
• ADHD has brought her creativity
• OCD has allowed her to be organized enough to accomplish what her ADHD has allowed her to conceive

"Doctors and psychiatrists made me feel like a total screw up," Francis says. "But this is part of me—a great and very frustrating part of me."

Francis offers three steps to help other people find their own superpowers. The first step, she says, is acceptance. "You need to be OK with who you are. Acceptance is the hardest step." Once acceptance has been achieved, Francis says you can begin thinking about how you can change the way you look at your challenges; in fact, to reframe them, as she has done, into advantages. The third step is taking action. "Use your superpowers to transform your life. Perhaps to find a new career if you are unhappy with your current one or addressing any other area of your life that is dragging you down."

About the Author

Brett Francis is the author of Not Broken: How to Overcome Mental Health Challenges and Unlock Your Full Potential. She is the host of the TV show Breaking the Barriers and the host of Not Broken Radio. She has been featured by Doctor Health Radio, CBC, CTV, News Talk 650 CKOM, 790 KABC News Talk, and hundreds of shows internationally. Moreover, she has been endorsed by Mental Health America, the Canadian Mental Health Association, Mental Health Commission of Australia and many others.

To view her media reel, visit https://vimeo.com/238256940/8edce2b4d5

Contact: Brett Francis, (306) 203-1504; [email protected]; www.mentalhealthspeaks.com 

SOURCE Brett Francis

Related Links

http://www.mentalhealthspeaks.com