Lena Dunham Posts Instagram Photo Of Her Taking Drugs? Actress Admits Mental Illness!
Lena Dunham, creator of HBO series, "Girls" and female-focused newsletter, "Lenny Letter," recently took to Instagram to address an important issue - mental illness.
On Thursday night, Jan. 21, Lena Dunham shared a powerful Instagram photo of herself taking prescription meds for mental illness.
"Can I live?" she wrote.
The actress, producer and writer also posted a stock photo of a hysterical-looking woman reaching for a jar of pills, calling out the negative perceptions that society attaches with mental illness.
"Lately I've been noticing that nearly every pop cultural image we see of a woman on psychiatric medication is that of an out-of-control, exhausting and exhausted girl who needs help," Lena Dunham captioned the Instagram photo. "But guess what? Most women on meds are women who have been brave enough to help themselves."
Dunham also said that people taking prescription drugs for mental illness are normal human beings, too.
"It's important that we see normalizing portrayals of people, women, choosing to take action when it comes to their mental health," she wrote. "Meds didn't make me a hollowed out version of my former self or a messy bar patron with a bad bleach job. They allowed to really meet myself. I wish that for every lady who has ever struggled. There's really no shame."
Lena Dunham's opinion on stigmatization of mental illness reflects a study published in "Psychological Science in the Public Interest," which states that stigma is one of the major reasons why individuals with mental illness are hesitant in seeking help.
"The prejudice and discrimination of mental illness is as disabling as the illness itself," said lead author and psychological scientist, Patrick W. Corrigan. "It undermines people attaining their personal goals and dissuades them from pursuing effective treatments."
