To start this off, comedy has clearly been a form of therapy to those who …show more content…
For Robin Williams this was the only way he was able to live. “Comedy can be a cathartic way to deal with personal trauma,” Williams said in an interview with Parade magazine. To Robin Williams comedy was his best attribute, and his most successful feature. While Robin Williams had this amazing career that to the outside perspective looked perfect, in actuality he was battling with depression. What he was able to do however was turn his mental illness into the comedy he would use on stage. Robin Williams could do his shows for hours without ever bringing up material because for him the best material was the one right off the top your head. Robin Williams is a prime example of how comedy can help people who struggle with mental illness. (Larissa …show more content…
Because of which making fun of mental illnesses can harbour negative stereotypes and discriminations. Since it 's a serious issue , people shy away from talking about mental illness. This is exactly why laughing at it is paramount. Australian comedian Felicity Ward had once stated that “Because people either don’t want to talk about mental illness or we only talk about it in very serious….. otherwise you’re seen as laughing at mental illness when actually, there is a lot about mental illness that is really funny… If I’m talking about it then I’m giving you permission to laugh about it.” Albeit, many comedians do not address mental disorders to break stigma , they invariably end up breaking the taboo attached to mental illness by making people see the light in serious matters. Laughing at mental illness shows that people are ready to see past the stigma and view it as any other disease.Mental illness is not a shameful secret that one has to hide from. Most of the time, it 's not social stigma but self- stigma that exacerbates the conditions of mental illness. So if people can start to see the light in mental illness and not as an anomaly, then the world could be a better place to live. ( Sherin