Stigma Of Mental Illnesses

As Americans it becomes natural to undermine those with a mental illness. As a fact, many adults and children deal with mental illness each and everyday. There are many stories that have been told to Americans about depression, anxiety, along with bipolar disorders, with the outcome usually being a negative consequence. For the 1 in every 5 citizens that deal with a mental illness each year. Americans have neglected the fact that many adults and children deal with mental issue(s), the citizens that refrain from getting help; their well being can suffer detrimental effects, there is not a lot of awareness either taught in school, or in public perspectives, American’s stigma has perfected their

The social problem I have chosen to write about is mental illness. This problem is important to talk about “because of the number of people it affects, the difficulty of defining and identifying mental disorders, and the ways in which mental illness is treated” (Kendall, 2013, p. 227). “About 57.7 million people, or one in four adults, in the United States suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder” (Kendall, 2013, p. 229). “Many of these illnesses begin in childhood or adolescence, with the most common problems being anxiety disorder, mood disorders, impulse-control disorders, and substance abuse disorders” (Kendall, 2013, p. 229). I chose this topic because I wanted to learn more about how mental illness is a social problem and I have been interested in learning more about mental illnesses and how to help people with mental disorders.

Mental illness and the stigma associated with it illustrate the concept of the sociological imagination. Living with a mental illness is a private trouble, affecting the individual personally, physically, psychologically, socially, and even economically. The trouble is made even more private in the respect that those with anxiety/depression/etcetera often suffer in silence since their affliction is not necessarily visible to others. The stigma associated with mental illness exacerbates the individual, while simultaneously lending itself to the public issues regarding mental illness.

7. Lt Col Chris Karns, "Eliminating Stigma: A Leadership Responsibility," U.S. Air Force, 02 September 2014,

The disparity in treatment has been attempted to be remedied over the eras. Bills and Acts put into place in the 20th and 21st centuries have seeked to improve care and reduce stigma around those with mental illness. This began in 1942, when Harry Truman signed the National Mental Health Act, which requested the formation of a National Institute of Mental Health. Shortly after this, in 1949, the National Institute of Mental Health was established (“National Institute of Mental Health”). During the company’s 60 year lifespan they have focused on research about mental illness, educating the public, and improving the lives of the mentally ill by working to pass laws. One law that seeks to reduce the stigma of mental illness is the Mental Healths Service Act of California. "California 's Historic Effort To Reduce The Stigma Of Mental Illness: The Mental Health Services Act" from the American Journal Of Public Health illustrates how the Act will make improvements. Families and individuals who have experienced stigma had a big role in the process, specifically with developing a 10 year plan, the California Strategic Plan on Reducing Mental Health Stigma and Discrimination. One component of the Act discussed is the work plan developed by California Mental Health Services Authority, which has three components: stigma and discrimination reduction, student mental health, and suicide prevention. Organizations such as the NIMH have made efforts resulting in the evolution of mental

One of the biggest contributors for poor healthcare is the stigma against mental health. This stigma allows healthcare providers to view those with a mental illness as having low relevance, thus creating disinclination towards providing adequate resources and/or care. This negative stance, based on misinformation and prejudice creates those that have a mental illness to lose their self confidence. Because of this loss, people with mental illness decide not to contribute to their health or livelihood. In the past fifty years, many advances have been made in mental healthcare. However, with the attached stigma, many people choose to not seek out treatment.

From the survey results concluded that the public has a better understanding of mental illness however, the amount of stigmatization towards people with mental illnesses has not been reduced significantly. The survey results from 2006 show that the public endorses medical care for people who have mental illnesses, it was felt both general health care and specialty mental health care were deserved accessible to people with mental illnesses. However, the percentage of people who felt forced hospitalization was the best treatment for people with schizophrenia was greatly increased. A majority of the people surveyed still expressed unwillingness to interact socially with a person who has a mental illness, in fact even more of the participants were unwilling to have a person with schizophrenia as a neighbor in 2006 compared to the 1996 survey results. Furthermore, it was commonly felt that people with schizophrenia and alcoholism would act violent towards the

Although about 450 million people in the world currently are suffering from a mental illness, many untreated, the topic still remains taboo in modern society (Mental Health). For years, people with mental illnesses have been shut away or institutionalized, and despite cultural progression in many areas, mental illnesses are still shamed and rarely brought to light outside of the psychiatric community. The many different forms in which mental illness can occur are incredibly prevalent in the world today, and there is a substantial debate about the way that they should be handled. Some people are of the opinion that mental illness is merely a variance in perception and that it either can be fixed through therapy or should not be treated at

Throughout history people who have a mental health illness are not accepted in society. The attitudes of people in society, for example the workplace, is an important measure of the success of that society. Segregating people with mental illnesses from society, by putting someone in a institute, contributed to the attitude that an individual with mental illness are not capable of participating or contributing in society. These negative stereotypes are often portrayed in media, and influence the stigma of mental health illness being dangerous. This controversial concept of dangerousness states that individuals with a mental illness are more dangerous than those without a mental illness. Various forms of discrimination and exclusion in society is still present today. If society begins to understand mental illness, then they will judge a lot less. Success in that society will come when society accepts other people who are different

When people are mentally ill, they suffer social stigma, have higher health costs, and are at an increased risk of becoming poor. Every one out of five Americans is diagnosed with a mental illness. That 20 percent of the population can negatively influence the normal stresses of life, working productively and fruitfully, and being able to make a contribution the community. When humankind as a whole cannot recognize that mental illness is a serious issue, there is more harm being done than good. Any kind of mental illness can be caused merely by society, but also can worsen due to humanity not understanding how injustice can make a serious impact. The mental health problems that people face can be limited to society learning about the injustice of these illnesses.

It is estimated that 43.5 million Americans, adults 18 or older, live with mental illness. This number represents 18.1% of all U.S. adults (National Institute of Mental Health, 2014). Stigma toward those who are seen as different have existed for as long as civilization itself, with the stigma for mental illness being one of the most prominent and long lasting that society has had to face throughout its ages (Arboleda-Florez & Stuart, 2012). Increased understanding and awareness for those individuals suffering from mental illness is necessary for us to overcome the impacts stigma has on our society.

Mental Health and Mental Illness are one of the major topics in the United State today. It is almost impossible for a person not to notice or heard of someone suffering from that disorder. People with mental disorder or stigmatize by the inability to function by the norms that society put upon them. Although there are evidence to support biological and enviromental reasons that contributes to the development of mental illness that alone does not ease the stigma that they are facing in a day to day basis . As a society, we need to educate ourselves and be supportive of those affected by this disorder in order to make this world a better place for them.

Therefore, through the enforcement of this norm, mental illness is just believed to be a pretext. However, what the society fails to understand is that mental illness does exist, the mental illness can be as minor as just excess anxiety and sometimes it can be as severe as depression. It can sometimes result in death or unending long-term effects. Social norms tend to compare mental disorder with the other diseases. People tend to compare it with other disorders such as high cholesterol or hypertension. But in reality, mental illness exists and should not be compared with other disorders because its effects are

In my essay, I will be looking to answer this deceptively simple question by exploring various avenues, mainly making a comparison both the medical and philosophical differences. I will attempt to first make a distinct definition of what mental illness is as a medical term, defining exactly what it is, how it affects us and people around us. I believe this is an important definition to make as it allows us to better understand mental illness in medicine, mainly how it affects our minds and daily life, which will greater allow us to approach the question philosophically. I will be explore how some believe that mental illness is an encroaching problem on modern society in terms of the amount of people affected by it,

Individuals with serious mental illness are doubly affected by their disease; not only do they experience the often debilitating symptoms of their condition, but they must also endure mundane mental health stigmas and prejudices. Stigmatized attitudes are perceived to be one of the greatest impediments to living a complete and fulfilling life. Stigma has been defined as a combination of three related problems: ignorance, prejudice and discrimination (Rose, Thornicroft, Pinfold, & Kassam, 2007). Ignorance implies a lack of knowledge, prejudice entails negative attitudes, and discrimination involves exclusionary actions against people deemed to be different. Two forms of stigma are commonly distinguished in literature. Public stigma describes the attitudes of society towards people with mental illness, while self-stigma results from the internalization of prejudice by people who suffer from mental health conditions (Corrigan, Powell, & Rüsch, 2012). The World Health Organization announced that stigma was the most crucial obstacle to overcome for a community to functioning effectively and efficiently (Ontario Hospital Association, 2013).