For some people success means having a healthy lifestyle, a family, and good paying career. For others success is just getting out of bed. The idea of “success” is different for everyone. The textbook definition of success is essentially to attain a goal or aim.
Society has developed the idea that to be successful we need to marry, create a family, and make decent money. What about those who don’t reach these goals? This constructed idea leaves those feeling behind or down. Some people may not want these things or other people may not be able to achieve them. They become blinded by what society needs us to be.
When it comes to an individual with a mental illness these expectations can take a toll. For individuals with depression, it could possibly lead them to feeling like a failure. This could lead to a deeper depressive episode.
The definition of success for someone suffering from a mental illness may be different each day. For an individual with bipolar disorder or schizophrenia it may just be to take their medication or attend psychotherapy.
It is important to not make the idea of being successful one set thing. People become lost in the idea that they must meet society’s needs and forget they need to meet their own. For people with a mental illness they need to remember their success is based on achieving a small attainable goal they set. With each day they should focus on doing one thing better for themselves. If someone can’t focus on this then they shouldn’t put themselves down and the people around them should never put them down.