Stop the stigma towards people with mental health problems! That is what every mental health charity/organisation is trying to do! But today I was shocked, so shocked that I had to blog about it! Today I read an article in the Guardian newspaper that really sent shivers down my spine. It was written by a ‘doctor’ who was attempting to define how to spot personality disorders in the workplace. It was full of utter rubbish and was a one dimensional diatribe against some of the most vulnerable people in our society today. You can read this trash for yourselves here.

Having been friends with a man with a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder (BPD) this article filled me with the ‘rage’ the author was trying to convey people with personality disorder diagnoses so commonly and viciously express. What furthered my ‘rage’ is that my friend took his own life earlier this year because he struggled so much living with BPD. He was a vulnerable man who tirelessly tried to help others – not ruin their lives or destroy their confidence in themselves as this article conveys people with BPD do. He ran a self help group for people with BPD, volunteered for the NHS, worked at changing policies in the government, run training courses designed to stop the stigma related to personality disorder and most importantly he built up peoples confidence in themselves where no-one else could be bothered. He invested in other people! He was a kind man. A special kind of man.

My friend fought tirelessly to try to change peoples attitudes towards people with a diagnosis of personality disorder because shamefully, too many mental health professionals fail to understand it, have compassion for it and fail to spend time unpicking what has been years of abuse or neglect. Simply because it’s ‘difficult’. It’s not a fix with a pill kind of thing!

This article is a disgrace! Shame on both the Guardian and its author. Let’s continue to do our jobs and stop the stigma towards mental health.

Please check out my other blog posts related to mental health here.

UPDATE: The vile article has now to taken down by the Guardian website and a letter co-written by my colleague Keir Harding has now been added to their website.