Why is there a stigma against those with mental health issues? HOW TO OVERCOME THE STIGMA?

Answer 1

I guess the only way is education.Yes, you are right and it's ridiculous.The fact is that EVERYONE at some point in their life will have someone in their family who will suffer from a mental illness of some kind, whether it be depression, anxiety, bi-polar disorder, anorexia or whatever.The only way to change attitudes is by challenging them and by being open about it.This is just another illness.People don't avoid people who have cancer or diabetes.Tell them this is just like that,treatable with the right medication, and it's NOT CATCHING!!!.I really do wish you all ,the best.Been there myself.

Answer 2

I've worked in the mental health field for 33 years and still find the idea of having a mental illness to be a stigma. My opinion-and it is only that-is people fear they may be mentally impaired, so making fun of or being afraid of mental illness is a way of denial. I really cant believe it's still this way. I always tell our patients, the brain is just another part of the body. If you fall down and break a leg, you wouldnt hesitate to go to the hospitlal. Dont separate the brain from the body.
All we can do is keep stressing that getting help for a behavioral problem is no different than putting a cast on a broken leg.

Answer 3

There's always prejudices in humans on all types of things but I think the major reason(s) why there's a prejudice with the disabled is because it's one of those things that harken back to primative times and the early human species not knowing about lots of things but finding stuff out. They realized some illnesses were contagious, (but back then they didn't realize that it was only a few and not all of them) so there's an instinctive fear that you'll catch what that person has. That's one theory I heard but now that I think of it another early man theory could also be the idea that the mutated or "less evolved" species of animals are usually left to die with no help. And there's probably an instinctive thought that this person for whatever reason is just not as evolved as you.

And really it's something that we struggle with in modern times. We have old and ancient ideas that the disabled person cannot hold an intelligent conversation, take care of anyone especially their children. And lastly if you think someone is less evolved then you, you definitely don't want to see them possibly do better than you. You know.

Answer 4

I think most of the people here are right about the stigma coming from a lack of education but there's another issue to think about. Mental illness can hit anyone and I think that most people don't want to be reminded that under different circumstances it could be them in the same situation, rather than face that reality they try to push it away and to pretend that reality doesn't exsit. I think to a certain point it's the same way that people treat people with physical disablites, like it's something catching and they don't want to take the chance. I use crutches to walk and I've had people ask my chidlren questions that should have been addressed to me. I've had poeple move their chidren from standing next to me, Sometimes they tell me it's because they don't want the children to trip me even if the child insn't standing in front of me. It's like a I have a sign that says I have lerporsy or something equally as contagious. I don't know how people would treat me if they also knew that I had an LD and a psychatiric illness. It doesn't seem to matter that I've been able to rasie two children to adult hood with no jail time, drugs. alchol. unwanted children and to get one of them through college and the other out on her own dispite a developmental delays. I hope that in seven years I'll be able to tell you that the youngest is graduating college also. What matters to these people it that I have a disability that they can see which causes them to make assumptions about me.

Answer 5

I still think there is a huge stigma attached to serious mental illness such as schizophrenia and personality disorders. Whereas things like depression and OCD i think have become more accepted. I have a mental illness and only a few people know. I think this goes for most people. People that see it as trendy are usually people who think they have or for some reason seem to want a mental illness, without realising the full implications of it. 1 in 4 people suffer from some sort of mental illness at some point in their life, so i think it's still the majority of people don't have a mental illness.

Answer 6

Clearly education is the answer.

I think that that much of the stigma is based on fear, as mentioned in previous answers most people in the population will suffer from a mental health issue at some stage in their life. I think that this is a terrifying prospect for those who have not experienced it yet and the way in which many deal with this is by trying to distance themselves from those who are currently suffering. People feel that if they can categorise those with mental health issues as "the others" it won't happen to them!

Not is this incorrect but unfortunately it also does not encourage compassion and empathy.

Answer 7

I think the main reason for the stigma is because it hasn't been too many years since people with mental illness were confined to insane aslyums, receiving shock treatments. You would think by now, that people would not hold that against persons with mental illness, but they still do. I think it would help if people were informed by the medical community about what strides have been made and how persons now can receive medications that keep the illnesses at bay, there would be much less confusion.

Answer 8

1. There is a stigma partly because the media usually only show persons with mental illness when they have committed a crime. Persons with mental illness who have not committed a crime (most consumers) are not newsworthy. However, there are some great movies which show people with mental illness in a positive light.
2. Just live your life as you want to live it, be a stigma-buster by proving wrong the people who believe in the stigma.

Answer 9

I am a mental health patient and I can hear the snickering already. Ok, you are forgiven. Mental sickness can come to anyone regardless of genes, age and academic/professional background. A person is deemed unstable when he/she starts to act other than normal, only relative to the people around him/her. Let's say, if you laugh at a funeral people will call you mad. If you dress differently, people will call you mad. If you dye your hair blue, people will call you mad. If you have such tendencies the only refuge for you is to be a celebrity. Where you can act as you like and yet have millions of fans. People often mistake eccentricity with madness. Right?

Okay, let's go into the deeper kind of madness. The murderous kind. Like a serial killer. That would be the kind of madness worth talking about. Taking another's life without feeling of remorse or even motive. In other words, inhumane. This kind of madness is normally genetic and scientists can detect it in babies rightaway now. Praise technology. Once detected it can be cured through the proper nurturing regimes prescribed by psychiatrists. So no worries there.

I am a divorcee and had lost my daughter to my ex-husband. After seeing the psychiatrist I felt like a burden's been lifted and cheerful to start my life back. First I took Zoloft but now I am on Seroquel. Without my medication I will have insomnia and feel the wrench in my heart again. I never expected that medical technology could cure the sickness of the heart or mind. My advice out there is Never Say Never cause mental sickness is just another person's misfortune in disguise and you shall never know when it will come knocking at your door.

Answer 10

It is all out of ignorance.

I also believe that it is out of fear, because anyone at any given time can be diagnosed with some form of mental illness.
I noticed that something was wrong with my son at a very early age, but was afraid to do anything about it because of the stigma. I didnt want him to be treated differently by ANYONE, and unfortunatly I had to face the fact that it in some form it may have been partly my fault, ( who wants to face that)?
I saw his actions becoming worse and worse daily, until he had to be hospitilized.
Than I woke up, and realized "this is my son"!! and we surrounded our selves with tons of support from the mental health community, and that made the fear go away, especially when you realize how wide spread these diseases are.
I wasted so much time worrying about stigmas, that I could have lost him.
SUPPORT SUPPORT SUPPORT, it is out there.