Maria Bamford Quotes

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 was hoping that I could say stuff about mental illness that maybe people didn't know. You know, speak up for bipolar disorder and let people know a little bit more about it that they may not have known.

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

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.'

I don't find anything upsetting or gross or degrading about fighting with a mental illness: Bipolar or Schizophrenia.

Mental health is an area where people are embarrassed. They don't want to talk about it because somehow they feel they're a failure as a parent or, you know, they're embarrassed for their child or they want to protect their child, lots of very good reasons, but mental health, I feel, is something that you have to talk about.

Time to Talk is all about tackling taboos and getting the nation talking about mental health.

It's so important that we all speak up on mental health.

I'm lucky to have depression less severely than a lot of people. I know some find it useful to talk about it and people are definitely doing that more. It's becoming less stigmatised.

I am privileged to have people around me who understand mental illnesses and mental health. However, the stigma around it is huge.

Not talking about mental illness is killing people. We need that to stop.

We honestly shouldn't be paying attention to nothing Kanye West says until he actually goes out there and gets the help we all think he needs. That's what keeps these stigmas about mental health and everything going - we act like it's a joke.

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.

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.

People are always selling the idea that people with mental illness are suffering. I think madness can be an escape. If things are not so good, you maybe want to imagine something better.

The mental health conversation is very important to me. I have friends that struggle with various mental illnesses. I've struggled with depression and anxiety. I'm very interested in how we deal with that.

Playing someone who has a mental illness, the responsibility to not stuff it up is really strong. You have to get it right. Not just for the people who are sufferers, but for the people who care about them - their loved ones.

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.

Every time the DSM prepares for a new edition, there are countless groups lobbying to get their particular mental illness recognized by the diagnostic manual. Surely, this is a social and cultural phenomenon.

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

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

We're becoming so much better at destigmatizing all sorts of things, including mental illness in 'Silver Linings.'

For too long we have swept the problems of mental illness under the carpet... and hoped that they would go away.