an entire family dies in 3weeks time followed by the only survivor being raped within 6 months. the person ends up with severe ptsd and depression. when she is well she finds it impossible to be employed because of her past illness which placed her out of work for 3 years. question. why do wwe accept all other conditions, flu/, cancer broken legs but why is their such a stigma when the mind becomes ill and needs to heal.
2007-08-21 08:09:46 · 3 answers · asked by elliepenelly 3 in Social Science ➔ Psychology
people fear what they don't understand
as a psy student i have found that most people who fear mental illness and stigmatize it it is because they don't understand the causes and reasons a person becomes mentally ill or because some don't believe it exists. It is hard to prove and some people have faked illness. In this society a few bad apples ruien it for those who are truly mentally ill.
2007-08-21 08:18:29 · answer #1 · answered by dreamsofinsomnia 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I personally think there are 2 reasons....
1. Some people truly believe mental illness is a "weakness". That "strong" people do not let such things bother them. So if you have a diagnosis you must be weak to allow such a thing to happen to you.
2. Historically I think psychology has had some misunderstood and shady beginnings as a science. It's a relatively "young" science and it's only been in the last 30 yrs or so that people have made more concrete discoveries. I think over time it will become less of a stigma. I hope at least.
2007-08-21 15:23:51 · answer #2 · answered by stargirl 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It is easy enough to tell when a person gets well from the flu or a broken leg, plus those problems don't cause aberrant behavior we cannot understand. A person who has a mental illness cannot be said definitively to have been cured. By definition the behavior of a person who is mentally ill cannot be predicted. That is scary.
2007-08-21 15:28:51 · answer #3 · answered by chasrmck 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋