Robin Williams

If his death can bring parity of awareness and understanding of a horrible illness in relation to other high profile illnesses then his loss wont have been totally in vain.

He had several illnesses: addiction, depression and, apparently, the early stages of Parkinson's. All of these are horrible and each may well have contributed to his ultimate suicide. I assume (and I hope I haven't misunderstood you) that you are referring to his depression as the "horrible illness". I can't imagine how dark someone's life must become for them to choose death as a better alternative to facing the next day; all I do know is that this must be a desperately sad situation.

I know it's a cliché but there is something terribly and awfully ironic for a person to bring so much laughter and happiness to other people and yet be unable to have that same carefree happiness themselves.

He suffered from manic depression and addiction...occasionally he referred to his gremlins. Clearly he was desperate and saw no other way out...what a way to depart from this life. Many who read this post suffer from depression or have experience of the illness, it's a bit taboo to discuss such a subject whilst other ilnesses, a stroke, heart attack etc seem to be perfectly acceptable and understandable.

cheddar wrote:He suffered from manic depression and addiction... it's a bit taboo to discuss such a subject whilst other ilnesses, a stroke, heart attack etc seem to be perfectly acceptable and understandable.

I don't think it's as taboo as it was, say twenty years ago but in some peoples' eyes, it's a sign of weakness. I have suffered from depression twice in my life, both times due to external circumstances, which are, arguably, easier to deal with than innate manic depression. The latter has no obvious cause and, hence, makes it harder for friends (and, indeed, the individual) to understand or ameliorate.