It’s been a year since our General, our Space Mom, drowned in moonlight, strangled by her bra.

I still have not seen The Last Jedi yet.  I have tried.  The first attempt was for the Geek Husband What Rules’s birthday, and I got a migraine.

I cannot think of a worse movie to watch while having a migraine.  Possibly any of the Transformers movies, but really.  Explosions, light sabres and loud noises.  Nope.

Last night, we tried again.

Every theater we tried to go to was sold out, except for the IMAX and 3D shows, which make both of us motion sick.

So, nope.

We’re trying again on Friday.

I get off early on Friday, so maybe a matinee.

But the one year anniversary of Space Mom’s death seems like a good idea to talk about mental health again.

A lot of us in the geek community suffer from some form of mental illness, or are neuro-atypical in some other way.  Those of us who were bullied may have PTSD.  A lot of people have depression, anxiety, bipolar or other disorders.

I want you to know that you are not alone.  You are not the only one who has been sexually assaulted, bullied, abused by people who loved you.  A truly heartbreaking number of us are struggling just like you are.  You are not the only one whose brain does not work like society tells you it should.

We have to keep talking about this to destigmatize it.  You don’t make fun of people who have cancer, so don’t do it to people with depression.

And we’re really only beginning to understand how trauma shapes the human brain, and how different types of trauma (one or a few experiences as opposed to abuse over long periods of time).  We’re better at understanding brain chemistry, but so many medicines have side effects that are sometimes worse than what they’re treating.

A lot of mental illnesses leave no external mark, all of the pain is on the inside.  Depressed people are often really good at putting on a happy face so no one knows, because society is so awful about it.  Some of us were instructed by parents who viewed mental illness as a weakness to hide it at all cost, to stay likable.

Brains are complex organs, and we don’t really know how exactly they work.  We’re getting better at it all the time, but we aren’t quite there yet.

So be kind to one another.  You have no idea what someone is going through on the inside.