Stigma of Mental Illness

Mental illness can strike anyone! It knows no age limits, economic status, race, creed or color. During the course of a year, more than 54 million Americans are affected by one or more mental disorders.

Researchers have determined that many mental illnesses are probably the result of chemical imbalances in the brain. These imbalances may be inherited, or may develop because of excessive stress or substance abuse.

It is sometimes easy to forget that our brain, like all of our other organs, is vulnerable to disease. People with mental illnesses often exhibit many types of behaviors such as extreme sadness and irritability, and in more severe cases, they may also suffer from hallucinations and total withdrawal. Instead of receiving compassion and acceptance, people with mental illnesses may experience hostility, discrimination, and stigma.

Why Does Stigma Exist?
Unfortunately the media is responsible for many of the misconceptions, which persist about people with mental illnesses.

Newspapers, in particular, often stress a history of mental illness in the backgrounds of people who commit crimes of violence. Television news programs frequently sensationalize crime where people with mental illnesses are involved.

Comedians make fun of people with mental illnesses, using their disabilities as a source of humor.

Ironically, the media also offers our best hope for eradicating stigma because of its power to educate and influence public opinion.

How Can You Combat Stigma?

• Share your personal experience with mental illness. Your story can convey to others that having a mental illness is nothing to be ashamed of.
• Help people with mental illness re-enter society. Support their efforts to obtain housing and jobs.
• Respond to false statements about or images of people with mental illness. Many people have wrong and damaging ideas on the subject. Accurate facts and information may help change both their ideas and actions.