MovieChat Forums > Wil Wheaton Discussion > Why was he diagnosed with mental illness...

Why was he diagnosed with mental illness so late?

posted 8 years ago by robertmarcl
4 replies | jump to latest

This was the same thing that happened to Anthony Michael Hall with bipolar disease and that was late in his life. Same with Robin Williams, even though the signs were there. Why did Wil wait so long to go to a doctor? Surely in the 80s there was lot of technology to see whether someone has issues or not. I was diagnosed with autism in 1989 and above all, I led a healthy life. I was wondering if he wasn't a celeb, would Wil have been diagnosed much earlier? Seems like everyone in the 80s and 90s had these issues, but never went public. The only one that did went public was Michael J. Fox. What do you think?

[–] pouncemo 8 years ago

Does he have mental illness? The only way I know him is from a Youtube video playing "Ticket to Ride" with his wife and some friends. He seems like a very grounded, happy guy.

I know you can't tell much from a video, but I don't see any recent threads about mental illness.

[–] Dottiegrl 8 years ago

I haven't heard he was diagnosed late in life, I just read he announced it. I know with myself I put off going to the doctor because sometimes people are just sad or have bad days or weeks. I also thought people with depression were always depressed, stayed in bed all day and cried all day. That is not true. Some people just don't like going to the doctor either out of fear or they've had a bad experience in the past.

[–] aimeeintx 8 years ago

My mother didn't show signs of Bi-polar disease until she was in her 30's
I have worked in a group home for mentally ill adults and we had a Yale processor end up living in one of our apartments. He had a film psychotic break in his 50's.
Mental illness can strike at any time if it's in your genes.
My mother, her sister and their grandmother all had this illness. My dad's side of the family there are 3 immediate relatives to him that are schizophrenic. Life is a gamble.

[–] Boookmanmovieloverr 7 years ago

I also thought people with depression were always depressed, stayed in bed all day and cried all day. That is not true. Some people just don't like going to the doctor either out of fear or they've had a bad experience in the past.

For a "retired teacher," you're not very smart if you honestly thought that.