Stigma
By Veronica Emilia Nuzzolo, M.Ed., Ph.D.
I woke up this morning,, really just not feeling myself,, it was a struggle to get out of bed,, I physically hurt, I forced myself up and out, because I had to, I have to go to work, I cannot afford to be out sick,,
I’m a bit ill, a little under the weather,, I will be fine,,, oh, how nice everyone in the office is,, so very concerned,, do you feel o.k., can I do anything for you,, would you like a nice hot cup of tea,, feel better soon,, oh aren’t you so kind,, I will be fine,, thank you,,,
Minimal disclosure as to what a bit under the weather means allows for empathy, having a bout of socially acceptable “a bit under the weather” is not earth shattering news, no one is running for cover,, no one needs to know that my a bit under the weather is mental illness. Why,, well,, if they knew,, they would run for cover, they would cluster together and formulate a contingency plan to exit the premise and find a “safe location.” They do not want to “catch it!” Ha,ha,ha,, thank you for your concern, but,, I am not contagious,,,,,,
I love irony,, when you were empathetic to my being a bit under the weather,, with what you thought was my socially acceptable illness, I was probably spewing those little pesky airborne pathogens,, contaminating the empathetic populace…….so sorry I gave you the common cold, flu, or I am so, so, so, sorry, mayhap tuberculosis…. or COVID-19!!!!
The National Alliance on Mental Illness reports that mental illness is a condition that impacts a person’s thinking, feeling or mood and may affect his or her ability to relate to others and function on a daily basis. Each individual will have different experiences, even those with the same diagnosis. 1 in 5 adults experiences a mental health condition every year.
That 1 in 5 could be you…..mental illness does not discriminate and neither should you……… STOP THE STIGMA!
How to cite this article:
Nuzzolo, V. E., (2016). Stigma. My Apologies, I Am a Bit Under the Weather Today. Retrieved from, https://eduction-is-power.com/2016/02/13/my-apologies-i-am-a-bit-under-the-weather-today/
EMPOWER COMMUNITY HEALTH - Counseling Services - 617-729-9111 
For me Mental Health is EVERYTHING! It affects a person’s thinking, feelings, mood, and the ability to associate or relate to others. This is something that we all should take very serious and educated ourselves and others about. We shouldn’t be judging other people based on their mental illness, instead we should be encouraging and supporting each other. We have to start educating our children’s that is okay to talk about this, and not to feel trapped or misjudged because what others think or overall how society sees it. I’ve been there I struggled with depression when I was younger it was the worst feeling ever. I was very antisocial I felt that I wasn’t important or I wasn’t good. Now i encourage others and I talk to other people to let them know is okay, we are all human, and that the support is there not to let ignorant people get the best of them.
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I work in the medical field, at a doctor’s office and we often administer Psychiatric medication such as Haldol, Invega, Aristada atcha. Those are medications that help mental ill individual to cope on a daily basis. Those medications are every 21, 28 or days. Missing one dose or two can be catastrophic for those patient. All that is to explain how it work for. mentally ill people. Often time those people are normal people just like you and I . You wouldn’t know they were on a regimen to stabilize their behavior. They are always ashamed when they come for their visit and they do not engage n big conversations.
Society discriminate against those people and make them fell less then. This is not their fault if they’re are mentally sick. It could have happen to any of us. The stigma alongside the illness is major and it can cause people to fall into serious depression and outburst. They always hide that part from society because you might look at them differently if you ever find that so and so is Bipolar, Schizophrenic, Paranoid, Manic etc.
This is why some people might be calling sick with a headache or fever but in reality might be experiencing an episode at home. Decided to stay home instead of letting you discover that side of them. This is not the best decision but guess what? They feel more safe away from everybody then being bulled by a disease that they did not choose to have.
Let’s bring more awareness around because mental illness is serious.
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Yes!!
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This article touches on the importance of mental health and the stigmas attached to mental health concerns. When someone is physically sick, the amount of concern and support a sickly person may receive is tremendous. Even with a little description such as, “feeling a bit under the weather,” is enough to receive empathy. However, on the basis of mental health, that level of care and support is not there anymore. Unfortunately, not everyone understands how serious mental health issues are or how to even support them. There are even cases where people do not acknowledge mental illness and even demean a person’s struggles. While solutions such as therapy and support groups exist to help the mentally ill heal, our society should work towards being a part of the solution as well. Understanding what these mentally illnesses are and being available can aid in a person’s healing process. As the article states, 1 in 5 adults will go through a mental condition each year and that person can be anyone. If we can work towards being an allies those who suffer mental conditions, then we can make a great difference in their lives.
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Although there are numerous advances in psychology, for some reason there is still a great deal of stigma that remains when it comes to mental illness. In school we are taught about Mental Illness a lot, especially ways to help those affected. The stigma with mental illness not only comes from society (social stigma) but also in those with mental illness themselves (self-perceived stigma). Mental illness has a long history of being stigmatized in societies around the globe. For instance, it was once thought of as a mark of the devil, and it was also considered to be a moral punishment. A very long time ago, trephining was thought as a treatment for mental illness. Trephining involved chipping a hole in the person’s skull to release the “evil” spirits. However, treatment of mental illness has come a long way since then, such as educated students on what exactly mental illness is.
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This topic will have us discussing for hours. I understand today, with the years I had lived that mental illness is not contagious and can hit any one of us without discrimination. I strongly believe that how you view a mental disorder is affected by your background, your culture, your experiences even your faith. There’s still a lot to learn about our mind, the world is changing fast and we have to think faster act even faster , and the stress that is attach to it is affecting everyone mind. So anxiety, depression , things like that , had become common to hear about and are mental dissorders also .. but we don’t trend to discriminate for that, and yes blame its a consequence of the environment.
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Mental illness (stigma) is very hard illness to treat in short period of time. So when we say mental illness it doesn’t mean a people who go out in public naked body and throw stone to anybody. Its composed social influence by the daily activity how we observe and accept everything from other people in their day to day activity. For example, if one-person work with a resist person then it will get hurt by psychological, mean that they (he/she) start to think I’m not fit in, and I’m poor, because of my tribe, color I’m not equal with that person. Then they get stress more and they become mental illness. If we taught our self to do wrong things our mind work with doing evil stuff. Doing bad things doesn’t give happiness for anyone. we human beings do not take care of each other. But we complain and blame for little things one another that doesn’t help us.
The following link is the research in America that how many percentages of people attacked by mental illness.
https://www.cdc.gov/mentalhealth/learn/index.htm
The best way to skip from mental illness is practicing positive rather than negative. Also, by reducing contact a people who hurt us. Forgiving for our bad behavior in the past, is very important action to let us move forward in our life with peace. As our professor say “today is new day” this can be help us do not attack by mental illness because. But, let we help a person who attacked by this problem. If we work together, we can change our society.
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gloodafternnon Profesor this is Abdi Abera. it change my name. thank you
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I definitely believe that’s it’s not good how there’s such a stigma on mental illness. Mental illness is a very difficult topic, but it needs to be brought to attention instead of staying behind closed doors. People also need to realize how mental illness is something that is real, particularly with depression and anxiety. I’ve often heard the phrases “everybody gets depressed” and “everybody gets anxious”. While that’s true, depression and anxiety is when a person suffers sadness and anxiety to an extreme degree. Just like how everybody gets sick, but some have really bad diseases. Mental illness comes from the brain, and the brain and its chemical responses is an organ that’s real. Mental illness is hard, but it’s worse when people ignore it. People shouldn’t be embarrassed to say that they go to therapy, nor should they be put down for wanting to go to therapy. The stigma on mental illness needs to end.
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Having a mental illness should not be a cause for discrimination. People don’t ask for mental illnesses anymore then they ask to be born, it just happens, they don’t get a choice. Do not treat them as if they are anything but real people, because they are.
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Stigma for me is looking at a person for something they have and treating them different because of that. The system does not really take care of the people with mental issues. Mental illness is hard to understand for most, but those who have it get judged by or treated different, it’s the little things that effect you like when someone finds out you have a type of mental illness, all I can think is here comes the eye rolling, and the snide comments, the dismissiveness. All that hurts the person who in that moment is in a sensitive position. We lack of awareness and understanding of what mental illness is, were reluctant and ashamed to admit we have it as well, people put up a wall when they are unsure of knowing about something. When we truly get to understand that mental illnesses are not choices then it reduces Stigma and reducing Stigma can save lives.
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Guilt and shame always prevent people from getting help, that is why it is imperative that we stop the stigma of mental illness.
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I like the article for several reasons. It sheds light on people with internal alignments that aren’t usually so visible. I can see how someone will tend to avoid someone who is always complaining about a certain issue they are going through especially in the workplace. The saying of nothing changes if nothing changes can be a mentality some people have towards people suffering from mental health disorders. I myself am guilty of avoiding the always down person. Maybe we feel as though there are tons of resources out there and the person should be utilizing them. But I also have a soft spot for people with untreated mental disorders as well. We can’t force treatment on people but maybe we can start to get rid of the stigma associated with the mental health field. That stigma is probably the cause of people of avoiding treatment all out of fear of being judged or being lumped into the category of not being well. So to me stigma can be bigger
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This article is very relatable. In today’s world, most people can’t afford to call out sick and miss work. You worry about being behind on task, what people will think, how it’ll affect your team, etc. Mental health is real and can affect anyone at any given time. I think it’s important for people to take a mental health day and focus on themselves, do some self-care activities, acknowledge when they’re feeling down and “out of it”. I also think establishing healthy relationships with friends, family, significant other, talking to a therapist every now and then is important. With that said, the stigma against mental health makes it difficult for people to be honest about their experiences and seek help. Some people rather deal with it on their own and keep it low key than hear gossips, opinions, and empathy. Some don’t disclose their mental health struggles because they don’t believe they can be cure or that their symptoms can be minimized.
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Great post. I’m going through some of these issues as well..
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I relate to this on an unimaginable level.
We do not live perfect lives. A lot of us face mental battles, and most of the time, we’re too scared or embarrassed to admit it because we fear the reactions of society. We hide in our own minds, unwilling to speak out about a mental illness that has taken over our lives and how we have no clue how to control it. The irony here is that these mindsets can actually prolong our healing and make our situation worse. Recovery becomes even more difficult. Personally, I am very familiar with the stigma that we commonly associate with mental illnesses. “You’re doing it for attention.” “It’s just a phase.” “You’re being too dramatic.” Stigma and discrimination can put people in a cycle of illness that worsens over time. And the sad reality is that the situation is provoked by media. False information is spread. Rumors gradually become a common belief. Individuals who suffer from depression or bipolar disorder, for example, are wrongly misrepresented. Sometimes, they’re portrayed as weak, overly emotional, or attention-seekers. To end this issue, we need to continue to educate people on mental health problems, and consequently, it can enable the public to change their views on this matter.
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We often ignore when a person gets depressed or when they need help because we think they treatment for sick people usually would had to something with physical like getting burned and getting treatments for, but the people who get depressed are getting hurt physically so we often ignore this problem and put it underneath the table instead reaching out for help. Would it be helpful if we were supporting mental illness just like any other illness so people would be healthier, happier and would not have fair to get their treatments. Another point is that people often wouldn’t accept and that they have mental disorder. In the eyes of the society often being mental disorder means has negative impact on the person, so the person who feel under the weather would not get treatments because they get more concerned about other people attitude towards them. We should stop discriminate and embrace people who have stigma instead of helping them.
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People who have mental illness have always been stigmatized and feel the need to hide their disease because of fear from the public. They usually fear the public’s reaction. They feel ashamed for a illness that they did not chose and that they don’t understand. However, it’s natural for people to feel insecure when dealing with the unusual ( mental illness) . People feel threatened when they have to deal with people who suffers from mental illness because they sometimes can be unpredictable; they simply does not know how to react to people who have a mental illness. People also feel umcorfortable being in the presence of a mentally illed person not because they know the person is sick but because of his/her reaction which can be threatening .I do not encourage the way mentally ill people are being treated but it is because of lack of education that others do not know how to respond to them or interact with them.
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My Apologies, I Am a Bit Under the Weather Today….
Who is “normal”? What is “normal”? I am using the word normal, because usually, the opposite of mental disease is “normal”. Define normal is quite impossible, in a world where there are homophobic, racist, utopian, murders, psychopaths, pacifists… All living together under the same sun with the same rights. Relationship in a society with, unmeasured diversity of personalities, is our greatest challenge. Mental disease is extremely common and yet, is so poorly understood. It is, still a taboo, because we don’t deal very well with the unknown.
Few years ago, when my niece announced to the family, that her two years old son, Pedro, was autistic, she used the most ”normal” voice tone possible, but sounded to me that implicit in her voice was a request: Can you please accept my son the way he is? Because before he was just a child with a learning delay, but now, he has a diagnostic, he has a title. She explained that the most difficulty for an autistic is, relationship. So, I asked: Are we all autistics? Because this is the humanity struggle: Relationship! However, if we don’t have a mental disease diagnostic, we are safe of judgement and life goes on. Is this the solution? I don’t think so, but I believe, we can change It and we can start inside our home.
Sonia Chimentao
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Very Nice!
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In my opinion stigma is a hard sickness to threat then other mental illness, for example stigma is when you do not know how to react or feel impotent of something that you are not able to do. Also is when people act a different way around other, because they do not know how to deal with the problem that is happening around then. Another example is when a group of students are in the class, and they have to do a group project, always is a student that feel frustrate and does not know how to do the part that he has to do, then the other group members act in a certain way to avoid the problem of the student or they start to put more pressure like bully like they will said that they will not get a good grade because of the student, that means that the group of students start to become stigmatized.
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I appreciate how this piece of writing put you in the perspective of the person with the mental illness. The narrator explains how she sees everyone react to her. Her response of “feeling under the weather” seemed fine and socially acceptable to her colleagues. If she had come to work and said, “I’m feeling depressed and I have no aspiration to do anything today.” I’m sure everyone would have a harder time finding a response to give her. She also had a hard time relating to her coworkers. Their concern wasn’t out of vain. I’m sure some of them were actually concerned with her well-being. They were trying to cheer her up, or give her things to make her feel better. I think the message she was trying to send was that, it is okay to feel vulnerable, under the weather, and emotionally not okay. All of these people were trying to “fix her up” to get her feeling “better”. But sometimes, it’s okay to let of rawness of emotion seek in. The stigma behind mental illness causes prejudice, and more emotional suffering. I’m sure this is one of the reasons why the narrator wanted to avoid expressing her real emotions to her colleagues.
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In my opinion, stigma is one kind of sickness harder to treat than mental illness. For example, mental disorders of children occur in early years of life characterized by indifference to the surroundings, behavioral disorder, language disorder, and impotence in communication. Some people do not like them, so they start to become stigmatized, even bully the kids, making them feel worse. I think if the child does not harm anyone, why stigmatize them? is happens because some people are prejudiced against this disease? If the child is supported; I think they will feel better.
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I don’t know much about mental illnesses except for down syndrome. When I was growing my mother always talked about her individuals but it wasn’t the same as actually sitting down and talking to one of them. When I was younger I used to treat them as if they had a common cold because I thought that because that because they weren’t as smart as me that they were dirty, because some of them wore diapers I saw them as babies. As I got older i realized how smart they were and just because they had mental issues it didn’t make them any less of a person then I was. One individual knew how to sign and another had more memory than any iPhone And lastly my 13 year old cousin has more personality than most people I’ve ever met and she’s just a joy to be around so get to know someone with a mental illness before you judge them.
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Hi Sherrece,
It’s great that you have discovered over time how much joy people with down syndrome can bring. My mother was a nurse and use to provide respite care for families of handicapped and disabled people. I agree with you that some of these so called “handicapped” people were brilliant in certain areas. For instance, One boy can tell what time it is in any part of the world at any given time. I thought that was pretty clever! They are also some of the happiest people I have ever known.
When people say “mental illness” they are generally referring to anxiety, depression, bipolar, schizophrenia etc.. I think what your referring to is different.
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The Lamp Community help people living with severe mental illness move from streets to home. I was amazed how this community offers immediate access to affordable, safe and permanent housing without requiring sobriety or participation in treatment. Usually, people can receive this type of aid, but they have to meet certain demands that Lamp does not need. I find this fascinating because they already have a condition, plus most of those people Lamp services face additional challenges such as drugs/alcohol addiction, physical disabilities, HIV/AIDS, and other chronic diseases which make their conduction even worst. I believe Lamp Community has a lot to say and teach.
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Having a mental illness isn’t something the people surrounding you should be afraid about. They shouldn’t run the other way when they know you’re coming or limit what they say around you because they’re afraid whatever they have to say, could hurt you. You’re still the person you’ve always been and yeah, some days will be worse than others but that doesn’t mean you treat them any different. If anything, that’ll make them feel worse. Someone with a mental illness isn’t abnormal, you walk past thousands of people a day that are suffering from depression, anxiety, all of that you and you have no clue. Somebody you’re close with could have a mental illness, does that mean you’re going to distance yourself now ? No. Mental illness are a scary thought but trying putting yourself in their shoes, how would you feel if you got treated they way they did because they’re not “normal”.
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Hi Isabelle! i think people do not understated that mental illness can happen to every one, and there is nothing to be afraid of. treating people with mental illness as very weak or giving up on them and not thinking that mental illness is another kind of illness that can happen to human make it worse for those people. treating them differently does not help them.
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Hi Isabelle
I agree with you there is hundreds of hundreds of people that we walk amongst everyday that have a mental illness that you don’t know about. people fall into anxiety from having so much on there plate at times. I myself went thru a stressful year and was diagnosed with an episode of anxiety which I never knew what it was like but it was the worse experience of my life and i am doing great right now a couple years after the fact but am grateful to have had my friends and people that loved me around to support me
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my intake as to mental illness goes along with the social acceptance. As stated in the passage Minimal disclosure as to what a bit under the weather means allows for empathy, having a bout of socially acceptable. It seems to me as time goes on the term mental illness is miss interpreted. but one I believe has to ask them self what is considered a Mental illness? Mental illnesses refers to disorders generally characterized by dysregulation of mood, thought, and/or behavior. I feel as if in this day in age Mental illness is looked down upon rater than cured. like in the passage a simple act of feeling under the weather turns those in that environment to act upon empathy. Its funny how when a person feels or gets sick, or ” a little under the weather” their environment tends to shift.
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It really goes along with social acceptance. a lot of people do not even ask for help because are afraid of being judged by the society. they prefer staying alone and isolated in stand of getting professional help.
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Hi Silvana, to partake to society’s role in Mental Illness I feel as society views mental illnesses as a disease rather than something that could be treated. Just a simple attitude shift in everyday personality causes those around to act out. On a “normal” day the persons environment would in some case be less sympathetic.
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I agree. Social acceptance has been closely correlated to mental illness. It is difficult if one does not learn the skill required to overcome their lack of social skill. Unfortunately, there is a lot of stigma still attached to mental illness.
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The study of mental illness is still very new, people are not much aware of it. Even if people know about it they don’t know how to deal with it. Educating everyone like parents, guardians, and people around them is very important so that they can approach to them in a right way and then provide them with the right support not too much not too less but to create a balance. This stigma like the other stigmas that we had/having are not going to go away over a night or in few days, it will take time. We should remember man is born as a ‘social being’ and cannot live alone. We definitely need to help each other, we should always remember first we are humans and should treat other humans in humanly manner, then comes other things. I feel we are getting there, people are getting more aware of mental illness and many people to educate people about mental illness, hopefully this stigma will go away soon.
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A lot of people arent aware of mental illnesses. They think that someone just might always have a bad attiude and do certain things because they are just not a good person or always in a bad mood. Working on a psychiatric unit has opened up my awareness on mental illness and it has made me rethink how i see people out in this world. People need to become more aware so they can help the people around them that can have a mental disorder and not realze it and just think that they’re always in a bad mood or having mood swings that they cant control.
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Yes Yessi, I totally agree with you many people are unaware of mental illness and even if they know they don’t know how to deal with it. Educating people is very important.
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Mental Illness is not something to joke about because like you said 1 in 5 experience a mental condition each year and for that one person its a huge struggle where we should be more supportive just in general with any type of condition and mostly everybody can relate to an incident where they’ve had a terrible day month year like its one thing after another but that’s where we have supporters to help us get through it. So I can completely agree and definitely connect with this .
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You’re absolutrly right we all need SUPPORT! its the most important thing to help someone with a mental disorder. They can be given all the meds they need but that can only go such a long way and when you have consistant support that will always go longer!
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I’m a bit under the weather today, you can seriously say that again! No seriously! I definitely can connect with this I don’t have any mental illnesses ( that I know of 🙂 ) but they have definitely been times where I was going through things and I just felt like people were automatically judging me because I was feeling down or just going through a difficult situation. I’ve definitely gone through that uncomfortable moment where you just feel like someone’s judgment is beaming down on your soul. It’s not necessarily to compare to people who have mental illnesses but I can relate to them because I’ve experienced people looking at me funny because of what I’m going through. that’s why I feel that a lot of people with mental illnesses don’t get the support they need to really better themselves because their support system isn’t there. If people with mental illnesses could possibly have better support systems around them and more guidance than maybe it would make their disability easier to conquer.
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I’ve noticed that people tend to shy away from the topic of mental illness and the possibilities of having one or more at a time, mostly because of the negative stigma that is associated with it. Which can at times bring up the the topic of Asylums from the last century and how the patients were treated, also what things can consider someone “mentally un-fit” for the society and be put in those buildings. But most of the time when mental illness is usually mentioned some may think it is some one exaggerating on how they’re feeling, or trying to gain attention, or trying to separate themselves from others since they “want” to be different;(and I have met someone like this before but rarely said anything to them because I didn’t like confrontation then.) Though you never really know if that off day or days can be something serious.
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I absolutely agree with this piece! Mental illness is not something we should hold against individuals, it’s something that we will all Fermin our lifetime. Whether that be ourselves or loved ones
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Negative attitude and beliefs towards individuals who have mental illness are common around the world. They are seen as abnormal or evil, which leads to negative actions and discrimination. I work as a waitress in a restaurant, and it is sad when my partners ask me to serve people who do not look normal for them; that bothers me a lot. I always explain the consequences of their behavior, and I just ask them for a little empathy for those people. I have clients who have schizophrenia, Tourette syndrome, and autism. My co-workers refer to them as Cristina’s clients which I do not mind. However, there is a lot of misinformation about mental illness. People should be better educated about the issue and stop seeing them as part of a stereotyped group. We as a community should support recovery and social inclusion.
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I myself suffer from depression. For a long period of time it was never addressed because I was not aware of it and my parents brushed my proclamations under the rug and said the famous phrase “Everyone’s depressed ” or “Just get over it.” I spent a lot of time ashamed of myself because I thought if I talked about people wouldn’t take me seriously. That I was just using it as an excuse. There is such a stigma in the world an especially in certain communities. I believe if their was more awareness and it was a mote open discussion people could better understand it. Its sad that people make the issue smaller and tend to play it off. Its a real problem and it will continue to remain a major one without acceptance from mankind. I think people have trouble understanding things that don’t have a specific look or explanation. Depression and anxiety comes in different forms and one must be willing to acknowledge that.
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Great post! I agree with you Fajr. This is a topic that should be a open discussion at home and at school. Educating people about mental illness can reduce stigma. Thank you for sharing your story.
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it’s good seeing other people perspective about mental illness. the country I am coming from, people fear mental illness and mostly just leave people with mental illness to be roaming the streets with no food or place to stay. But sometimes it just a handful of people to see the reality side of life. Its’s truly amazing seeing these comments and learning new ways
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You are absolutely right it is good to see a lot more individuals participating in trying to help out with the issue at hand. It’s ice to see a lot more people who are attentive of the situation and really take into consideration that this is not of a laughing matter
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Mental health condition is a serious problem in nowadays society, In my point of view, mental illness should not be discriminated, it is normal and it is a part of our life. In everyday life, we might have all sort of things will affect our mentality, such as you fail on your exam, you engaged in a brawl with friends, or even you don’t like the weather today. Sometimes, you don’t know when or how it happened. It you keep ignore it, it definitely will become a serious problem and affect you. However, all you need to do is accept it, solve it and make changes to avoid it.
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It is ridiculous how some people belittle others with mental illnesses. The thing I dislike most is when people say that anxiety is just an excuse to not do something or whatever the case may be. Anxiety is, by definition, “a feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome.” People that pinpoint how anxiety is “fake” or just an “excuse” are ignorant human beings. What about depression? Just because some have it and some don’t doesn’t mean that it isn’t real. I have a friend who I fear is suffering from depression. She’s just so… I don’t even know how to describe it. It makes me sad and I want to help. People that really think mental illnesses are imaginary don’t understand them. How could you ignore someone for that reason? Why?
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I really enjoyed your writing and I agree. It seems like there is a whole social stigma against mental illness. As if it isn’t real, because it can’t be studied under a microscope. In reality, many people deal with mental illness all around us. It may just not seem that way because they do not want the world to know about it. It’s pretty sad that people are more afraid to come out of having a common cold than having depression. It seems like mental illness is extremely misjudged. The mentally ill are treated like there is some unfixable problem with them. Causing them to in most cases be ostracized. I wish the stigma wasn’t like that but it is, and it definitely needs to change.
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As we known the most serious infectious is HIV. when someone get that, all the friends, classmates even family will leave you… Why? because they afraid. they don’t want to death, they want have more time to make their lives wonderful. and they don’t want to know your feeling. they think you just a stranger in their lives. But I think we should face these problem, if we run to these people, chat , have dinner with them, and tell them be happy for every day, they will change their lifestyle, maybe in the future they catch their heath because of your encourage….
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This has opened my eyes a bit. Mental illnesses are not something that just anyone can catch from being near one, its developed throughout the lifetime of the person through the thinking and/or experience of that person. Yet when someone who doesn’t know much about it finds out, theirs two types of people, those that want to help and those that run in fear. Those with mental issues need support rather than everyone running from them. We treat those with autism nicely yet those with mental illnesses get the “cold shoulder” by most people. Some mental illnesses we’ve heard of but there are those that we haven’t heard of that sound so different that they must be different. Which is socially wrong and should be stopped.
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Mental illnesses are one of those things that people like to categorize as out of sight out of mind. And it really shouldn’t be known as that. It should be treated as if they were physically problems. I know people with depression and it pains me to see people with such an illness be struck with it. The worst part about these mental illnesses is that can happy to anyone. Even if you’re the happiest person in the world one day ,you can be struck with if these mental illnesses at any times.
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Mental is totally a problem in this society. People treat people that are mentally ill as second-class citizens without knowing that everyone is prone to these diseases regardless of race, gender or age. We should not discriminate against them nor should we treat them like abnormal people. More often than not, we don’t take them seriously. Well! we should because if their state degenerates, the spillovers will be on us. We also need to understand that these people need assistance, comfort and nurturing. With proper care and assistance, their conditions will improve. By approaching them we get to know them more and hopefully eliminate the stigma.
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I have read this a few times, and even though its a bit sad, it’s very true. I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety when I was 13 years old after going to an adolescent rehab facility. When I got back to school, many people were distant from me, most of them did not understand. They were all asking me if I was ok and if I was better now. It was never anything that anyone could see. So when they ask if I was better…well of course I said yes. If I say no, then they don’t see anything wrong with me.
To the average person, someone who has depression and other mental health diseases are just someone people who are called “overdramatic”, or “crazy” or “a psycho”. Call me crazy or whatever you please, but depression and mental health disorders are real. Many times in my life, I wish I had a tangible disease. Not because I’d prefer it, but so that people can believe that sometimes, I just don’t feel like me.
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I think the biggest problem in society is the acceptance of different even though we think and say we are free and live in democracy we still have problems with judgment. we have accepted many things that have been considered immoral, anti legal but we still struggle with something natural that can happen to every one. mental illness does not chose or is a option to be chosen even strongest, smartest and pretties people can get mentally ill. who wants to stick around sad or sick people, we run away and say poor him or her, or some of us will say oh he/she has lost the mind. we make them feel even more ill because we put them in pressure by looking at them differently feeling sorry or afraid of them. we don’t have to diagnose them, is the doctor to do that, we can help by respecting them and try dot to make it noticeable that we know, unless they feel comfortable talking about it. what a world, we have reach the spaces (mars etc) but still struggle with human mind.
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“Mental Health Stigmatisms”I am writing a paper for another class on mental health in other cultures, I chose to focus on India. As I was doing my research I learned about the population of mentally ill in that country that are afraid to go for help because if anyone found out they would be singled out in the community. I started thinking that this is not just a third world problem. I thought about the city of Lynn and its extremely diverse population. Among that population are mentally ill people from every culture and every age group. Because most people are ignorant of what a person with a mental health condition acts like, they almost run when they see someone acting differently or talking to themselves while walking down the street. They don’t realize that for the most part they are harmless.
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Society makes mental illness out to be far worse than it actually is. There are many different forms of mental illness just like there are many different physical illnesses. Your friend, neighbor, manager, or sibling can have a mental illness and you might not even be aware of it. Instead of providing help and support for people with mental health disabilities, society alienates them. Our minds need to be taken care of just as much, if not more than our physical bodies. One of my manager’s has bipolar disorder and no one would even come to believe it. Physically there is nothing different, but in his mind there is a lot more going on than we realize. With regular medication and therapy he is fully functional and has a wonderful job. People who don’t know him well would be in shock if they found out he has an illness. We should not judge people with disabilities, they are part of our society whether we know they have an illness or not. We should not blame them, it is not their fault.
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I think to some extent no one recognizes anyone with a mental illness until it is crisis time. Then the question arises, What’s wrong with him.? We need to get society to a point that a person who has a mental illness does not feel ashamed to let people know that is a part of who they are. In the long run, knowing that a person has “limitations” be it physical or mental would help everyone. We could limit the stress we put on a person, or in extreme cases even modify their job duties to be more accepting and sensitive to their needs. Being married to a person with Bi-polar disorder and raising a son with Autism, I have learned that everyday is a new challenge and a new chance. I can’t see the world how they see it, but I can take the time to listen to them describe it to me and help them realize when what they see is not real. I can take each challenge and help them cope through it. Sometimes I can just tell them I am here when you need me, and that is enough.
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You are very right in defining limitations and accommodating people with both mental and physical disabilities. Society would be better off helping it’s inhabitants rather than shaming them. Your family is lucky to have someone like you. Just a listening ear can help someone tremendously.
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Hi Shelli, one I love and respect your post. When I walk the hallways of my school I notice kids who have some form of a mental illness and I feel as if society at school tends to react in as certain way to those individuals differently as opposed to their counterparts.We as society cast rates people who have a disorder or a mental illness, rather than find the means to guide them with the rest of society. Rather than putting them to the side , we as society needs to accept the facts of that persons situation rather than their mind sets.
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many many people go through this and experience this… I myself have and never understood it until I had my own experience with it… You can act like you understand and be sympathetic but until you really experience it personally at some point you will never ever know what really goes on inside of someone… I never understood and was very unsympathetic to my sister who is still going through it daily but I learned my lesson when I got a good dose of my own break down… We shouldn’t judge something just because we don’t understand it but maybe be a little more sympathetic to it instead of acting like we know how they feel… just be understanding
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Eventually when everyone has a general understanding of mental illnesses: the variety of illnesses, the causes, the signs or effects, even the origins, there will be no “normal.” Everyone will have to take care of their mental health just like you rush your teeth and feed yourself to take care of your body. The illnesses will not linger have a negative connotation. Mental illnesses will just be a constant part of our health that we need to take care of regularly.
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You’re right it is actually slowly but surely becoming some what of the norm for many… the more we understand it the better it will be
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I think illness is a serious issue, nobody should judge based on it. There is no such thing as normal in the world anyways. If everyone reflects back on themselves, they should not judge anyone else. People with mental illnesses are the same as us, everyone has their own quirks. People judge and think that that group is to feared and not approached. But if everyone got to know a person by more than appearance the world would be a better place.
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I think the population of people with mental illnesses seem to vastly expand every decade. It’s hard because a lot of people are under the impression to act normal and even if you are feeling down nobody ever expects it to be serious. People hide their depression or other problems from their families and friends to seem like normal. It’s as if there is no time to take care of your mental health nowadays to survive. Instead we got to worry about jobs, bills, kids, and other responsibilities. Everything put before us but our own mental health. People are afraid of getting help because they don’t want to seem as though there is something wrong with them which is unfortunate but it happens. They don’t want to worry their families and sometimes feel so alone which is why we have such high suicide rates in this nation. People just living with all these mental illnesses that can;t handle it themselves until they have a permanent solution. Also on the other hand a lot of parents don’t really believe in these illnesses which causes these teens to feel alone. Loneliness leading to negative decisions that nobody should have to make.
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Jennifer, I agree with you. Those with mental illnesses should be able to get help just like anyone else with a cold, fever, etc. You brought up how they would hide it so that they seem “normal” to their friends and family. I don’t even know what is the meaning of being normal anymore. Different people and culture have different interpretation of being “normal”. Especially in a diverse country like America, there are many meaning of being normal. I feel that having a definition for being normal is wrong because it is hurting and harming many lives. Like how you brought up suicide, they would get so lonely and worth less they don’t see their purpose of living anymore, especially since they are not considered “normal”. When dealing with something hard like a mental illness, support is important, it is what will motivate people, a support system in families, friends, the community.
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Jennifer you bring up some excellent points on how people don’t have time to handle their own mental health because of their responsibilities at work, home, etc. They think that by ignoring the problem it’ll just go away which is certainly the reason for the high suicide rates I agree. But I also want to address when you briefly mentioned about a lot of parents not believing in mental illnesses. In my experience this is the case for unfortunately a lot of families. Their parents don’t believe somethings is wrong unless they see something wrong with them physically, like coughing, fever, etc. So when a parents constantly doubts there is something wrong with the child and think that their “a bit under the weather” is a hoax for them to get out of going to school and just send them to school anyways is the reason the child grows up hiding there mental issue because if their own parents don’t even believe they are sick then why would the world? So they just go about society thinking that their the only person going through this learning disability,depression or mental problem. They don’t go see a doctor for help because they weren’t raised to go to the doctor for every little thing that’s wrong and are in denial about their own mental health because they don’t believe it even exists. This is a serious problem with families that raise their children with this mentality. It is like a ripple effect, they teach their children this and then they teach their children and the problem never goes away unless someone educates themselves and stops the cycle.
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I agree with you Jennifer, due to repression and daily responsibilities people’s mental health needs are not being met. Also, societie’s reactions to mental illness, either they are in disbelief or do not see the serveruty, only causes more repression.
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Hi Jennifer I agree with the fact on people having to act normal. What is it to be “normal”? In today’s society no two definitions are the same. I feel as if people tend to act as someone their not. Also I have come in contact with many that can’t accept what they have. Their not comfortable with their situation and can’t fathom how to cope with their illnesses. People with a mental illness don’t want others to suspect that they don’t fit society’s “norm”…what ever that may be.
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It is sad that society stigmatizes mental. Mental Health is very serious and people suffering from mental illness should be taken serious as well. Saying that you’re “under the weather ” is better because society would treat you very like you’re sick or need some special treatments if you’re having a bad day. Everyone has bad days, especially people dealing with mental illness but that doesn’t mean that they need to be treated like they have a contagious disease.
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Kelcey I totally agree with you, even though saying you’re under the weather is not a good way to phrase it. Everyone has their bad days and some go through more than you, you would never know. Some people smile all day, they have problems, but they do not show it to the world. They deal with it in their own way without complaining.
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but i think if someone is telling people they are under the weather they didnt want them to know what was really going on in fear of being made ashamed of what they are dealing with…
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The fact that society stigmatizes mental illness is very sad because society should not have prejudicial attitudes and discriminating behavior directed towards individuals with mental health. Mental illness is not contagious, it is actually very serious. People suffering from mental illness should not be treated like they are going to die, or they have an extremely bad disease. Treating them this way its just going to make them feel worst about having mental illness. Society should be more aware of someone’s feelings not just their own.
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I agree with you, the majority of people have prejudicial attitudes towards individuals with mental health, and this is not okay because like you said this people should be treated as an equal, treating them like they have a disease would make them feel like there is actually something wrong with them
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Daelynn I agree with you. If someone is different society treats them so horribly. Everyone has the same feelings and experiences, everyone should be treated equal not tiptoe around them because of certain mental illnesses. With all the movies and TV shows that glorify the negatives I feel so sad that people discriminate based on how someone acts. If they got to know a person it would be a whole different story.
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exactly, and as long as tv shows and movies portray those with mental illness negatively , society would not treat them differently because they” don’t know better” since they have not had an experienced with a person with mental illness. This is the reason, society will not stop judging.
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Yes society should not prejudge, and it should not discriminate, and it should not be ignorant about the issues regarding the stigmas surrounding mental illness but that doesn’t mean that society will stop. It has become second nature to judge others, and that’s just the sad reality of the society we live in. We use the power of social media to further damage the image people carry of those with mental illness, instead of using it to build a positive impact/attitude.
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I agree with you lynnou, even though society is aware of the damage they are causing others they will not stop because like you said it has become second nature to judge others. But those with mental illness should not be judged or treated differently because they suffer from mental health, but social media has made sure that those with mental illness are viewed in a negative way by society.
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I agree with what you’re saying it’s ridiculous to say mental illnesses are contagious. The whole idea of a mental illness is something that happens mentally, within one person’s self. It’s not a disease but in society it’s kind of seemed that way. Which is why we have people hiding what their going through because they want to seem “okay”, like everyone else which usually isn’t even the case because everyone has problems of their own or may even share the same illness you do and understand. Maybe if the topic was more openly discussed people would feel more comfortable discussing the topic and invest more time with their mentality.
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I totally agree with your idea that if mental illness”s were brought up and became more familiar to society, then they would be more easily accepted as the people of society would be more comfortable with mental illness. Discussing mental illness more openly would also let society learn the true facts about mental illness’s. Society would understand mental illness’s better and what the people who suffer from them undergo.
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I totally agree with your idea that if mental illness”s were brought up and became more familiar to society, then they would be more easily accepted as the people of society would be more comfortable with mental illness. Discussing mental illness more openly would also let society learn the true facts about mental illness’s. Society would understand mental illness’s better and what the people who suffer from them undergo.
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I like that statement you made, “mental illness is not contagious”. It’s very powerful, and is something that needs to be recognized on a larger scale. Too often people stay away from those who are outwardly suffering, in order to not be exposed. This confusion is what leads us to develop biases and stigmas against people, because we do not allow ourselves to understand them.
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Listen to: The Problem with the Solution – Americans LOVE solutions. But are there problems we shouldn’t try to solve? Lulu visits a town in Belgium with a completely different approach to dealing with mental illness.
http://one.npr.org/i/482311381:483156032 … It’s like they’re sitting on our blog discussions.
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