People are always amazed when I tell them I have a mental illness. They will often say "I would have never known if you wouldn't have told me". I just love when this happens. I love to feel the state of amazement from that person at that time. This for me is one of the greatest ways to help eliminate stigma, misconceptions and discrimination against people with mental illnesses. By being in front of such a person and demonstrating to them live, in person, in front of them, that I am a human being just like everyone else and like themselves, I am often able to give them a true example of the opposite of what they were taught, what they heard or the stereotypes of what a person with a mental illness is "supposed" to look and be like.

Mike Santoro