A 31-year-old has been struggling with her mental health since she was 18 but when she tried to seek help, she was told she was “too pretty” and didn’t need NHS help.
Jade Rowlands, from Caerphilly, Wales, visited her local GP after struggling with her mental health for years.
She was diagnosed with anxiety and depression but she knew something was not right.
Jade tried every anti-depressant and even had counseling.
When the mother-of-one was referred to the primary mental health team in February, she was told she’s too pretty to be depressed and didn’t need help.
She said: “They said they didn’t feel I needed to see anyone because of my appearance – because of my nails, my hair and my make-up.”
“I was well presented – I felt that’s what they said. Basically they told me I’m too pretty for help. I went in there crying. I was distressed going in there.”
She felt discriminated and the incident left her angry. She has since gone private to get a diagnosis.
She was diagnosed with psychological trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
She said: “I went private before I was diagnosed with anything else. I was diagnosed with psychological trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) – depression, anxiety, and panic disorder are secondary to those things.”
Jade is now seeking private help and has been seeing a doctor named Alastair Clarke-Walker after having two seizures in January and ending up in a hospital.
She now wants to raise awareness about mental health issues and is planning to create a support group named Muddled Minds for people with mental health issues in her local area.
Muddled Minds was due to launch this week but is now rescheduled to be launched later in the year due to the coronavirus crisis.
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