mental-health-stigma

Stigmas speak to the idea of difference and how difference shames us and those we know.

Results of two independent factor analyses of the survey responses of more than 2000 English and American citizens parallel these findings (19,33):- fear and exclusion: persons with severe mental illness should be feared and, therefore, be kept out of most communities;- authoritarianism: persons with severe mental illness are irresponsible, so life decisions should be made by others;- benevolence: persons with severe mental illness are childlike and need to be cared for."World Psychiatry. 2002 Feb; 1(1): 16_20.PMCID: PMC1489832Understanding the impact of stigma on people with mental illnessPATRICK W CORRIGAN and AMY C WATSON

The process of reforming the mental health system never includes the complaints that families and caregivers have regarding a need for increased access to resources, treatment, education, and financial support. Reform has continued to ignore the basic needs of families and suffering individuals with severe mental illness and special needs.

Severe mental illness has been likened to drug addiction, prostitution, and criminality (37,38). Unlike physical disabilities, persons with mental illness are perceived by the public to be in control of their disabilities and responsible for causing them (34,36). Furthermore, research respondents are less likely to pity persons with mental illness, instead reacting to psychiatric disability with anger and believing that help is not deserved (35,36,39).Understanding the impact of stigma on people with mental illness. World Psychiatry. Feb 2002; 1(1): 16_20.PMCID: PMC1489832PATRICK W. CORRIGAN and AMY C. WATSON

This disease comes with a package: shame. When any other part of your body gets sick, you get sympathy.

Public stigma Stereotype Negative belief about a group (e.g., dangerousness, incompetence, character weakness)Prejudice Agreement with belief and/or negative emotional reaction (e.g., anger, fear)Discrimination Behavior response to prejudice (e.g., avoidance, withhold employment and housing opportunities, withhold help)Self-stigma Stereotype Negative belief about the self (e.g., character weakness, incompetence)Prejudice Agreement with belief, negative emotional reaction (e.g., low self-esteem, low self-efficacy)Discrimination Behavior response to prejudice (e.g., fails to pursue work and housing opportunities)Understanding the impact of stigma on people with mental illness. World Psychiatry. Feb 2002; 1(1): 16_20.PMCID: PMC1489832

I had people saying 'it's all in your head'. Do you honestly think I want to feel this way?

Sometimes the people around you won't understand your journey. They don't need to, it's not for them.

Mental illness is nothing to be ashamed of, but stigma and bias shame us all.

1 in 5 people have dandruff. 1 in 4 people have mental health problems. I've had both.

Several themes describe misconceptions about mental illness and corresponding stigmatizing attitudes. Media analyses of film and print have identified three: people with mental illness are homicidal maniacs who need to be feared; they have childlike perceptions of the world that should be marveled; or they are responsible for their illness because they have weak character (29-32)."World Psychiatry. 2002 Feb; 1(1): 16_20.PMCID: PMC1489832Understanding the impact of stigma on people with mental illnessPATRICK W CORRIGAN and AMY C WATSON

The mentally ill frighten and embarrass us. And so we marginalize the people who most need our acceptance. What mental health needs is more sunlight, more candor, more unashamed conversation.

No one would ever say that someone with a broken arm or a broken leg is less than a whole person, but people say that or imply that all the time about people with mental illness.

I'm not the kind of person who likes to shout out my personal issues from the rooftops, but with my bipolar becoming public, I hope fellow sufferers will know it's completely controllable. I hope I can help remove any stigma attached to it, and that those who don't have it under control will seek help with all that is available to treat it.

People who live with mental illnesses are among the most stigmatized groups in society.Fighting the stigma caused by mental disorders: past perspectives, present activities, and future directions. World Psychiatry. Oct 2008; 7(3): 185_188. PMCID: PMC2559930

While a psychiatric diagnosis can serve a purpose in treatment plans, it should not become a tool to discredit a person's disclosure of abuse.

To actually accept that you have an eating disorder or a mental health issue is actually a sign of great, great strength. It is not a sign of weakness at all.

In talking with people that have experienced it, I learned that PTSD is something that a person in a position of authority sometimes thinks they__e not supposed to have. They don__ always have an avenue to personally address it or even discuss it.