Why shine a light on my own past, 30 years later? Why speak about this so publicly? I have had a good career and achieved most of the things I had hoped to. Why rake up the past? Why not stay silent as I have for three decades?
If a person who has reached the highest point in their specialty still feels ashamed of events 30 years ago, and is reluctant to admit it, how must those who are going through things and feeling disempowered now feel? I am determined to use my own example to point out that mental health problems are nothing to be ashamed of.*
This is sobering. Depression and suicide are not limited to just medical practitioners. It’s more common than many suspect, but it remains mostly invisible. It is a silent killer. It’s like a leprosy that no one wants to be visible or share. Relationships, families, jobs, and lives can crumble. Uneedlessly.
Anyone that has or had a friend or family member with depression knows. Many times too late.
Please. Don’t let this happen to a friend or family member. No one is an island.
* Dr. and Professor Steve Robson, President of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstitricians and Gynecologists, in “Learn from me: speak out, seek help, get treatment.”
