Why is there a stigma for people with mental illness?

Question

I just find that people who suffer with depression seem to have to hide their illness as if its something to be ashamed of you should be able to speak about it with out feeling guilty or like your being a burden on people

As a girl with a history of depression i still feel like i cant talk to people about how i'm feeling incase they think "oh here we go again wots wrong"now. I try not to put my feelings on anyone but it can be hard when your holding all this emotion in you just neee someone to talk to. My own way of dealing with it is to write it down and get it off my mind. I havent lost hope that i'm here for a reason and have something to live for

Answer 1

The press doesn't help in my opinion.
It is also hard for others to see a mental illness.
If someone has a broken leg others can see it.
I have chronic pain and I also find others find that hard to understand normally if you have a pain if goes away.
With mental health it tends to be a long standing problem people prefer things that go away.
They don't really want to hear other peoples problems a lot of the time it is a question people ask but don't really want to hear a bad answer to it.
I used to reply I am fine how are you?
My dad died in January so my depression has been really bad this year. Most people I know are aware of this.
I have learned if I am feeling bad and someone asks how are you today I generally reply I am depressed but don't feel you need to do anything or say anything about it but I am not hiding how I feel anymore. I generally get a I hope you feel better soon or others will ask if I want to go for a cuppa with them to talk.
I don't tell people I have BPD as that tends to scare people so in someways I am also ashamed of my diagnosis.

Answer 2

The stigma occurs because of ignorance.If I had a broken leg, I would have all the sympathy I could handle because a broken leg is visual.I would have a Plaster Of Paris cast on it to help it heal,and probably many autographs on it. When you have,for the want of a better phrase,a "broken brain" you can't see it, and it can't have a plaster cast put on it.I have had depression on and off for over 35 years and I do hide my illness but I am not ashamed of it...I just have it and that's it.Only my closest friends know how I am on my rough days,and I can talk through my depression with them without expecting answers or solutions as,by and large,there aren't any.I would have to say ignorance starts in infancy as there is very little education towards the masses about mental illness in general.I wish ignorance could be reversed so that I wouldn't have to feel ashamed or guilty over having something I never wanted to have in the first place.I do feel that the burden of depression is in the silence of the sufferer.It is true to say that you don't have to be mentally ill to have a mental illness...that's a fact. I wish proper education would start in schools so that later generations of kids,when they become adults,would not be so fearful and afraid of those who do have depression. After all,is it not just simply another illness?

Answer 3

It's because it's easy to shun or make fun of things we don't understand, and mental illness is just that. If we truly understood it we would be able to fight it far better than we already can. When someone's personality seems to change, its scary. Others don't know what to do or how to treat them - often they wouldn't be able to get through anyway.

It's not an outward illness like someone in pain, or someone who has a disease, rash, broken leg, cancer etc. Its an inward illness that others can't see and don't know why it's there.

Its has a label attached of being crazy or not quite right in the head and for people that don't or haven't suffered that is very difficult to come to terms with.

Also, there may be an element (depending on the individual case) of THINKING that people are pointing, laughing, talking about you when you are ill, even if they aren't, which would make you become withdrawn.

Answer 4

You are correct that people with mental illnesses should not be stigmatized for something that they cannot control.

Why are they, numerous reason. The number 1 reason would be ignorance. Many people do not believe that depression is a real mental illness and they do not understand why they don't just "snap out of it"

Another reason is that many mental illnesses are not curable. It is something that we do not know why it exists, and we can do no more than treat the symptoms.

There is also an assumption in the general population that someone with a mental illness can be dangerous.

Not to mention, that many individuals are just self centered and really have no desire to listen to other people talk about their problems, and depression is just one of those things people like to ignore.

Answer 5

There is a general feeling that mental illness is incurable.People think such people are "mad".There is no Government effort to rehabilitate mentally sick people,even after full cure.They have to be brought in to the main stream.Only voluntatry agencies and church can do much on these lines.Education the public is another major step.While "depression" is curable,they are looked down upon when people with incurable diseases(diabetic) are accepted by society.It is a pity.

Answer 6

It is this way all over. People understand about colds and so forth. When the illness changes who you are, that is more of a problem. Not everyone finds it a problem. Be encouraged and seek to find such ones. If you are in that situation, seek help at the county health department. They will have support groups for people who have mental illness and for the others who are affected.

Answer 7

Some people don't understand if they have not been through it themselves. When you have a broken limb, people can see that you have a broken limb by the cast you may be wearing, so therefore may go out of their way to understand your predicament. But with depression it is not always seen, so people do not always know that you are suffering.

I've suffered with depression and for a brief period I was embarrassed, but now.... I don't care what people think.

I think social awareness has improved, though society on the whole has a long way to go.

Answer 8

I think that you are doing very well! Well done! You should be very proud of yourself. I really mean that. Don`t hide your feelings, the people that really love and care for you will be prepared to listen if you are down. If you get a negative reaction, then they are not being supportive and people like that will only drag you down to their level. There is a stigma because people that have never had mental health problems find it difficult to understand what it is like. They can be very harsh, I know that from my own experiences. I found, like you, that the only thing that REALLY helps is to write it down. It helps to put it in perspective. Take care of yourself and well done again!

Answer 9

Part of it has to do with pity and the not wanting of it.

Another part is the hindrance and not wanting to hold anyone back.

There's a difficulty in relating to others making it difficult for others to relate back.

And then there's being alone for such a time u only know how to be alone.

You may notice that im portraying the person who has the illness
to be the cause, because in my case i am the cause.

Answer 10

Its the way in which people like me in general are treated when diagnosed with mental illness. We feel that society just dont know enough facts and we get labelled as 'off the rails' there is not enough support and as a result we just get on with it in silence