Jane Pauley Quotes

The guilt I felt for having a mental illness was horrible. I prayed for a broken bone that would heal in six weeks. But that never happened. I was cursed with an illness that nobody could see and nobody knew much about.

Some people say I'm unique, that there aren't other people with schizophrenia like me. Well, there are people like me out there, but the stigma is so great that they don't come forward.

I am mentally ill. I can say that. I am not ashamed of that. I survived that, I'm still surviving it, but bring it on. Better me than you.

The funny thing about insane people is that it is kind of the opposite of being a celebrity. Nobody envies you.

When you've been locked up in a mental institution, people are going to ask questions. It was OK, because I didn't have to act perfect all the time.

I want to break down some of the stigma associated with mental illness.

There's such a stigma around mental illness, and this idea that you're going to come off as disturbed or weak somehow by being open about these things. I've never felt embarrassed or shy talking about it; it's such an integral part of my life.

Some people don't like showing any deviation from normality, but I like talking about things like that, so talking about my mental health wasn't a big deal.

My dad died, and he wasn't in my life because he had schizophrenia, so it's been something that my entire family has been fighting against since I can remember.

It's so important that we figure out a way of moving beyond the stigma that still exists around treatment for mental health.

Many people with mental illness suffer in silence, afraid to seek help for fear of victimisation.

Diagnoses exist to help get people services they need - but there's no such thing as mental illness. We're all mentally ill.

There are lots of people with mental health disabilities, and that's just the way their life is; it's not like you see it in the movies.

I think the stigma surrounding mental illness and also the stigma surrounding self-esteem issues or insecurities or just even feeling different is something that doesn't really get enough attention. Everybody struggles with feeling alone or that they are going through something they don't quite understand.

That's like making fun of a maniac because his brain isn't completely right, because he isn't in the norm.

Mental illness is the last frontier. The gay thing is part of everyday life now on a show like 'Modern Family,' but mental illness is still full of stigma. Maybe it is time for that to change.

I want to show that the dividing lines between sanity and mental illness have been drawn in the wrong place.

Mental health needs a great deal of attention. It's the final taboo and it needs to be faced and dealt with.

I attribute the black tones in my films to Stephen King, Tim Burton, Joe Hill and Richard Matheson. However, most of my writing is influenced by mental health. I'm incredibly passionate about shedding light on the stigmas associated with mental illnesses.

We develop social systems for the handicapped, but when you're handicapped in your mind, society doesn't handle those situations well. I think we don't recognize or acknowledge the power of messages and how deeply affected we all are by the messages we receive from the media.

Mental illnesses are so frightening and there's so much ignorance about them that I think it comforts people to think, 'Oh, well, it happens to these people because they deserve it.'

Getting to have an opportunity to tell a story that is about mental illness and how it affects one's self and one's community was really something that really meant a lot to me.

Mental health is seen as a massive drag to have to write about - worthy, dull. Something you should 'have' to read / write about.

I am repeatedly asked in interviews exactly 'what's wrong' with me, and I always give them the same answer; I don't identify the name of my condition in an interview unless it's relevant to the context of the story.

The only reason I've shared my story is to take that tiny baby step of breaking down the stigma attached to depression.