Why is there so much stigma attached to people with schizophrenia?

Answer 1

The media have a field day when a schizophrenic person slips up in the public eye. Schizophrenics are often very withdrawn and timid people and yearly thousands of murders occur only about 40 are caused by a schizophrenic person.
People love the fear of the "unknown" and very few people are educated about schizophrenia even a lot of the families of these people are not getting the proper information required about the illness.
The media loves turning these people into monsters and how many stories in the news paper do you believe? if it said "meat prices have dropped by 10% this week" the very large majority of us who don't investigate this would take it word for word, and the media loves to twist stories.
We also seem to love movies portraying schizophrenics as axe wielding killers, someone hearing voices is a pretty disturbing thing to most (especially the person experiencing them) and film makers know how to play that well turning schizophrenics into demonic characters who may be being controlled by the voices of Satan him self or at least portrayed that way.
We often fear the unknown, most people don't even know what schizophrenia is you get these dumb 13 yr olds who make jokes like "I'm a schizophrenic and so am I" I have had to inform so many people that is MPD not schizophrenia.
We are so used to the everyday killer, a man shoots another man we think "thats terrible" but sadly we are used to this, when schizophrenia comes into it something we don't hear much of often it leaves a huge impact "man kills other man after being told to do it by voices" sounds more interesting something more uncommon in the papers and the media has a field day with it.
We will remember the things that don't happen often for years to come it will leave a huge impression on us and really get us talking, but notice in all these articles of schizophrenic murder cases the media portrays them as horrible people they never tell the full story of how they themselves were tormented for years by their own mind or maybe they thought that person was the devil and once out of their delirious stage understand and feel horrible as to what they have done ... bloody media....

Answer 2

I think the general public have so many misconceptions about what is it...many think it's a split personality and others hear a rare incident on the news where someone with this illness has attacked somebody.

It's a very sad illness as it often strikes just as an individual hits late teens, early twenties. But while it's not curable, I know a lot of people with schizophrenia who lead their lives fairly balanced if they have the correct support and medication.

Most people with schizophrenia are not dangerous, they pose more danger to themselves than anyone else when they are unwell. It's only when that person slips through the mental health net that things may go badly wrong...but that is not common.

It's a shame that mental illness still carries stigma, although things are slowly beginning to change.

More education is needed.

Answer 3

as what Odd has said, most schizophrenics are not violent at all, they tend to be introverted and tend to keep to themselves and want to remain unnoticed. Schizophrenia is NOT Disscociative Identity Disorder. The 2 disorders are COMPLETELY different. But that the media for you. People with schiz are not sociopaths nor do they have antisocial personality behavior. There is alot of stigma because people who commit these crimes want to blame their indiscretions on mental illness such as Schizophrenia and Bipolar, so therefore the people who really have these disorders are thought to become people like the ones you hear from the media. It is simply untrue.

People with Schizophrenia are more harm to themselves than to anyone else.

And I dont think the stigma unfortunately will go away any times soon. These criminals, murderers, pedophiles blame their sickness on these disorders but most of them usually get these disorders "just in time" to get off of their convictions, yet there is usually no history of these disorders until the crimes happen and again unfortunately people buy this crap and let people get off with a slap on the hand and the ones who REALLY are sick get the stigma from it. Good ole US of A

Answer 4

my son is 17 and he is schizophrenic as well as psychotic disorder.
He does get violent so I can understand why people can be scared because sometimes I am scared of him he has smashed my house up hit his sister and dad and has turned aggressive on me.
He has now been put onto MODOCATE injections it will take a month or so before they get the right dose for him but I am hoping for light at the end of the tunnel.
And according to his Dr when they get the right dose for him he should lead a pretty normal life.
All we can do is live in hope it is such a complicated illness and affects people in different ways I am finding it very hard to understand myself.
And continue to ask Why Why Why as there is no one in my family or his fathers family with this condition and I have 3 other children and none of them have it either.

Answer 5

definite there is unfortunatly.i imagine the worst element is even as human beings way 'he's so schizo...' about someone who's genuinely no longer.....it has change right into a be conscious to describe those who're no longer laid low with it yet are somewhat loopy. which signifies that human beings affiliate schizophrenia with loopy human beings. human beings imagine they understand what schizophrenia is and what a schizophrenic individual is like, even as truly they basically have a sterotype photo. T o me a sturdy way of describing human beings thoguhts about schizophrenia is to look at it as how Bipolar change into appeared at 10 years in the past. again then Bipolar change into no longer understood and human beings who had it were no longer understood, yet now it really is so prominent, each body thinks they have it or maybe 'pick' it becuase of the extreme numbers of celebritys battling it. schizophrenia is like biploar change into 10 years in the past. this is the variety of pity with all the recourses and concepts availiable to those who there continues to be stigma connected t psychological well being issues. in spite of the undeniable fact that, we are definatly in a more effective powerful position now more effective than ever, we are nevertheless popping out of a time the position dr's didnt actuley tell their sufferers what their diagnosis change into becuase of the stigma! we are forsaking the terror of psychological well being and the sufferers. It has change into more effective proper in genrall to have psychological well being issues out interior the open. This has been helped by potential of a few of those issues being so prominent (this is unhappy truly) yet a minimum of it help human beings get clinical care even as they truly are ill. positioned it this way, i might want to a lot search for suggestion from with be born now my psychological heath themes than 10 years in the past!

Answer 6

because a lot of people do not understand mental illness, and they are afraid that they might see it in themselves. the media does not help either, like one flew over the cuckoos nest. i just saw a movie about the criminally insane, just made a couple of years ago. it wasn't much better. it showed the patients as' raving lunatics" and i worked on such a ward, and it was not like that at all. with proper treatment most schizophrenics can live a somewhat normal life, with the symptoms under con troll with medication. they are no more dangerous than so called normal people. education, understanding, and empathy is what is needed for these people.

Answer 7

There are stigmas attached to things people don't understand, because they are ill educated on and so misjudgements or sweeping generalisations are made - as with other types of mental illness too - depression, anorexia etc- people fear what they don't understand - the key is education.

Answer 8

the stigma is not just for schizophrenia its for anyone who has a nervous disorder and although most folk accept it as another illness! it comes from the old days of the asylum which older folk will remember and the grimness of it all

Answer 9

Demonstrated by North London Bird - most people only know the stereotyped schizophrenic - ie a complete split personality where one being a psycho which is extremely rare.

Most people don't know of the more common symptons of schizophrenia.

Answer 10

YOU PEOPLE ARE ALL IDIOTS. Do you even have the slightest clue what schizophrenia REALLY is? It is NOT alter egos or split personalities. It is:
"A group of psycotic disorders characterized by DISORGANIZED THINKING, disturbed PERCEPTIONS, and innpropriate EMOTIONS and ACTIONS."

The "stigma" is a result of gross ignorance!