An Expert on Mental Illness

I am pleased to report that I am scheduled to present as an expert on mental illness at an international virtual conference in May. I’m honored, excited, and ready for the challenge. I also find this incredibly funny.

I am an expert on mental illness. Isn’t that hilarious?

Before you think this is about self-doubt, it’s not. I feel confident that I can provide the content they want. Between my Psychology degree, further study over the years, coaching training, and a lifetime of personal experience, I am an expert compared to the average human. I totally got this.

But on the other hand, I’m being recognized and utilized for having a mental illness (or multiple, really). And I have to laugh at that.

As the late, great Carrie Fisher once said,

“Having waited my entire life to get an award for something, I now get awards all the time for being mentally ill … I’m apparently very good at it.”

The Real Princess Leia

Like Carrie, I’m very good at being mentally ill. I struggle to function in the everyday world. I have days I can’t even bother to feed myself. Sometimes I have to sit alone in dark rooms to calm my anxiety. I can rarely enjoy social events, even when they’re for me. I rely on man-made chemicals to sleep and get myself out of bed in the morning. I have a whole blog where I tell the world about my mental illness, for heaven’s sake! And somehow, all of that makes me an expert.

Imagine a person who participates in regular rituals to appease the gods of love. Before they perform their blood rituals, they catch owls and care for them until the owls are in tip-top condition. They then decapitate the now-healthy owls in their backyard in order to perform their ritual sacrifice. And then imagine asking that person to speak at a convention on owl health. Technically, are they an expert on owl health? Sure. But is it funny? Also yes.

It’s me. I am the decapitator of owls. And I’m presenting at the conference.

Have you ever been considered an expert at something that you weren’t expecting? How do or did you feel about it?