on tv, mental illness has never

been portrayed as what it really is.

no matter what the producers say,

no matter what neurotypical people say--

they never really show what it's actually like.

instead, they

romanticize it,

glamorize it,

dramatize it.

make it seem like

wanting to kill yourself

is a cute little quirk

and not a serious ailment.

act like leaving behind

tapes is the same thing

as leaving a suicide note

and not a disgusting revenge game.

hannah baker was never classified as depressed--

they never brought up mental illness once,

never thought to really dive into what

depression and suicidal tendencies are really like.

they just gave graphic instructions on how

to commit suicide and acted like if clay

had said he loved her maybe she wouldn't have

killed herself-- because to them that is how this works.

i dated a boy who was suicidal

and on the same night i first told him

i loved him he tried to overdose on tylenol.

i gave him all the love i could muster

and his depression didn't go away

because that is not how it works.

it has never been how it works.

so stop saying 13 reasons why

is a groundbreaking show

because it's not.

it pushed the same old ideas

and the same old tropes

and, as per usual, when

mentally ill people spoke out,

they

didn't

fucking

listen.