Over the past couple years I have stopped my clinical psychiatric practice after 35 years and have been searching for anything that will lessen the stigma and that will cause those with mental disorders to seek and receive treatment.

It has been almost two weeks since Lindsay Lohan appeared on The Late Show With David Letterman and, even with last week's horrific events in Boston, ...

At a moment when mental health is so much at the forefront of the minds of Americans and our media, it seems time, again, to try to understand the damaging views so commonly held about people with mental illness.

I'm proud to live in America, and I love the fact that brave men and women support the military efforts of this country by keeping us safe. They should also be offered the proper health care and employment opportunities to get back onto their feet.

I have spent half of my life as a mental health advocate, and it's really refreshing to see how many people understand the need to talk about these issues. However, these problems won't be changed with conversation. They will be changed with action.

Part of the message of the movie is that it takes a lot of mutual support for people to be their best selves, whether or not mental illness is involved. And that if we're not afraid of mental illness, and we don't try to hide it, we can help people manage their symptoms and live up to their potential.

Years after my trauma, I have come to realize that being different can be a blessing if you are willing to forge on. I have also found that talking and writing openly about my mental illness can help to shed the stigma for men and women.

These were the people who shaped lives, who shaped my life. They weren't famous enough to get an obituary in the big newspapers. But they were the people who cared, who gave me moments each day that I looked forward to.

Our poor handling of mentally ill youth as they enter adulthood is a sad comment on our society. People with mental disorders are not a voting block or disenfranchised group who hold special appeal to our politicians.

We simply cannot continue to cut access to mental health services and expect positive outcomes. We cannot ignore current deficiencies in our mental health and care systems.

I fear that the conversation about mental illness as it relates to the Connecticut tragedies will cause people who may have been on the verge of reaching out for the support they need to retreat. I fear that people who are struggling on the inside will struggle even more so alone.

At this point, any comment on the psychiatric profile of Adam Lanza, the 20-year-old man responsible for these murders, is complete hearsay. By themselves, these traits do not indicate any diagnosis at all, although we have been quick to dissect them in the search for meaning.