how to reduce the stigma associated with getting treatment for mental illness

Full Answer

Why do we need to stop the mental health stigma?

be socially included in mainstream society. Stigma and discrimination can also make someone’s mental health problems worse, and delay or stop them getting help. Social isolation, poor housing, unemployment and poverty are all linked to mental ill health. So stigma and discrimination can trap people in a cycle of illness.

How do we break the stigma surrounding mental health?

Seven Things You Can Do to Reduce Stigma

• Know the facts. Educate yourself about mental illness including substance use disorders.
• Be aware of your attitudes and behaviour. Examine your own judgmental thinking, reinforced by upbringing and society.
• Choose your words carefully. ...
• Educate others. ...
• Focus on the positive. ...
• Support people. ...
• Include everyone. ...

How we can combat the stigma around mental health?

• find work
• be in a steady, long-term relationship
• live in decent housing
• be socially included in mainstream society.

Why is mental illness still so stigmatized?

Perhaps they stigmatize the mentally ill because society always marginalizes people who are different. Or people may blame the person, not realizing that mental illness is a no-fault brain disease that you can't just will away. Then again they may feel unconsciously that they are to blame.

How does stigma affect people?

Some of the harmful effects of stigma can include: Lack of understanding by family, friends, co-workers or others. Fewer opportunities for work, school or social activities or trouble finding housing. Health insurance that doesn't adequately cover your mental illness treatment.

What is stigma in Mayo Clinic?

Stigma is when someone views you in a negative way because you have a distinguishing characteristic or personal trait that's thought to be, or actually is, a disadvantage (a negative stereotype). Unfortunately, negative attitudes and beliefs toward people who have a mental health condition ...

How to overcome self-doubt and shame?

Don't let stigma create self-doubt and shame. Stigma doesn't just come from others. You may mistakenly believe that your condition is a sign of personal weakness or that you should be able to control it without help. Seeking counseling, educating yourself about your condition and connecting with others who have mental illness can help you gain self-esteem and overcome destructive self-judgment.

How to overcome self judgement?

Seeking counseling, educating yourself about your condition and connecting with others who have mental illness can help you gain self-esteem and overcome destructive self-judgment. Don't isolate yourself. If you have a mental illness, you may be reluctant to tell anyone about it.

What is a negative stereotype?

Stigma is when someone views you in a negative way because you have a distinguishing characteristic or personal trait that's thought to be, or actually is, a disadvantage (a negative stereotype). Unfortunately, negative attitudes and beliefs toward people who have a mental health condition are common.

What to say instead of "I'm bipolar"?

Don't equate yourself with your illness. You are not an illness. So instead of saying "I'm bipolar," say "I have bipolar disorder." Instead of calling yourself "a schizophrenic," say "I have schizophrenia."

Can stigma lead to discrimination?

Stigma can lead to discrimination. Discrimination may be obvious and direct, such as someone making a negative remark about your mental illness or your treatment. Or it may be unintentional or subtle, such as someone avoiding you because the person assumes you could be unstable, violent or dangerous due to your mental illness.

What is Mental Illness Stigma?

The struggles surrounding mental health are quite a lot to bear. Top that up with the stigma of lack of education and discussion around it and you can basically define what mental illness stigma entails.

How to stop stigma in mental health?

This is predominantly one of the best ways to stop mental illness stigma.

How to deal with stigma of mental illness?

The best way to deal with mental illness stigma is by educating yourself about the facts instead of being tied up with the myths.

Why is mental illness so prevalent?

One of the most common reasons why the mental illness stigma is so prevalent is because of the fact that many people are not aware of what it entails. This is what causes people to misread situations and contributing to the stigma further. If you have the knowledge and the scope, educate others about the same.

How to stop stigma?

If you are struggling with mental health issues and want to stop mental illness stigma, the best way to do so is by ensuring that you are vocal about the prospects of treatment and therapy. Much like how you would seek help if you were ill, even mental illness is something that needs professional help.

Why is it important to reduce stigma?

Finding ways to reduce mental illness stigma is important because of the alarming increase in the fatalities. If you have been personally struggling with mental health conditions that you feel uncomfortable talking about, it is time to change that. Being vocal about the condition is what helps tide the stigma over.

Why is mental health stigmatized?

The lack of education and awareness surrounding mental health is often what is considered to be the primary reason behind the stigma.

How can I make a difference in the mental health movement?

No matter how you contribute to the mental health movement, you can make a difference simply by knowing that mental illness is not anyone’s fault , no matter what societal stigma says. You can make a difference by being and living StigmaFree. Laura Greenstein is communications coordinator at NAMI.

Why is stigma important?

This is the unwieldy power that stigma holds. Stigma causes people to feel ashamed for something that is out of their control. Worst of all, stigma prevents people from seeking the help they need.

What is a phase mental illness?

Most people who live with mental illness have, at some point, been blamed for their condition. They’ve been called names. Their symptoms have been referred to as “a phase” or something they can control “if they only tried.”. They have been illegally discriminated against, with no justice.

Is stigma an unacceptable burden?

For a group of people who already carry such a heavy burden, stigma is an unacceptable addition to their pain. And while stigma has reduced in recent years, the pace of progress has not been quick enough. All of us in the mental health community need to raise our voices against stigma. Every day, in every possible way, we need to stand up to stigma.

Who said "I fight stigma by talking about what it is like to have bipolar disorder and PTSD on Facebook"?

Even if this helps just one person, it is worth it for me.” – Angela Christie Roach Taylor

Why is stigma dangerous?

Stigma can make people feel somehow less-than, damaged, or abnormal because of a diagnosis of mental illness often leading to negative consequences. People may avoid getting life-saving treatment, refrain from reaching out to offer support to others in similar situations, or remain silent instead of advocating for policy and structural changes that could benefit everyone.

What is self stigma?

Be someone who helps start conversations about self-stigma. Self-stigma is a concept that is too infrequently mentioned in mental health treatment circles: the term refers to the internalization of public stigma whereby a person applies negative beliefs to his or her own self-concept.

How to remove stigma?

We can all start with these five steps: 1.Remember that language matters; it’s worth changing your language habits. The terms we use when discussing mental health issues matter.

Who wrote "It's an odd paradox"?

“It’s an odd paradox,” wrote actress and mental illness destigmatization advocate Glenn Close, “that a society which can now speak openly and unabashedly about topics that were once unspeakable still remains largely silent when it comes to mental illness.”

Is mental health a sprint?

It will always be true that improving our health (mental and physical) is a marathon, not a sprint. If we can figure out the things that make it easier for us to attend to our mental health – including the de-stigmatization of mental illnesses of all kinds – then it’s important that we pursue them as fully as we can.

Should mental health be a luxury?

The ability to access necessary mental health care should not be a luxury. Individuals should be able to receive flexible care for mental illnesses in the setting of their choice with collaboration from their primary care provider – at least as easily as they can with their other physical health concerns.

How to help someone with mental illness?

Choose your words carefully. The way we speak can affect the attitudes of others. Provide support for those dealing with mental illness. See the person, not the illness. Encouragement lets others know that you are willing to listen and they are not alone. Your words matter.

How to educate others about mental illness?

It’s the first step in helping others understand. Choose your words carefully. The way we speak can affect the attitudes of others.

What is the effect of misunderstanding and fear on mental health?

Misunderstanding and fear often leads to prejudice against those with mental illness. This prejudice may lead to feelings of hopelessness and shame in those struggling to cope with their situation. These feelings often prevent people from seeking treatment.

How to avoid using hurtful words?

Avoid using hurtful words and labels when talking about mental illness. Use respectful terms when discussing with others. Instead of “the mentally ill” use “people with a mental illness” and instead of “committed suicide” use “died by suicide”.

What does it mean when you score zero?

Unless your score is zero, you have had thoughts, feelings, or behaviors which can contribute to increased stigma toward people with mental illness. The higher your score, the more likely it is you have had these types of experiences. If you scored a zero, congratulate yourself.

What does stigma mean in mental health?

In other words, stigma can translate into disrespectful, unfair, or discriminatory patterns in how we think, feel, talk and behave towards individuals experiencing a mental illness. Where stigma comes from is a complicated question.

How to fight stigma?

Here are 5 simple steps you can do as a new stigma fighter: 1. Don’t label people who have a mental illness. Don’t say, “He’s bipolar” or “She’s schizophrenic.”. People are people, not diagnoses. Instead, say, “He has a bipolar disorder ” or “She has schizophrenia.”.

What is stigma in addiction?

Stigma has various definitions, but they all refer to negative attitudes, beliefs, descriptions, language or behavior.

How to reduce stigma?

Stigma is often fueled by lack of awareness and inaccurate information. Model these stigma-reducing strategies through your own comments and behavior and politely teach them to your friends, family, co-workers and others in your sphere of influence. Spread the word that treatment works and recovery is possible. Changing attitudes takes time, but repetition is the key, so keep getting the word out to bring about a positive shift in how we treat others.

Where does stigma come from?

It’s almost like asking where differences in racial prejudice, political views, religious preference, or sports team allegiances come from . Turns out we are influenced (all too easily) by family, friends, the media, our culture and environment, inaccurate stereotypes, and a host of factors. It’s really difficult to tease all this apart.

Is mental illness dangerous?

People with mental illness tend to be dangerous and unpredictable.

How can mental illness be a benchmark for anti-stigma efforts?

Improving the experiences of those who have a mental illness is increasingly viewed as an appropriate benchmark for judging the success of anti-stigma efforts. A number of new measurement instruments have been developed to capture the nature and consequences of personal stigma, so as to target anti-stigma programs to where they are most needed and to measure their effects (Ritsher et al. 2003; Raguram et al. 2004; Brohan & Thornicroft, 2010; Stuart et al. 2014 a, b, c ). At least three national anti-stigma programs (The UK, Canada, and Germany) have included measures of the experiences of those who have been stigmatized and published these results in the peer-reviewed literature (Gaebel & Baumann, 2003; Corker et al. 2013; Stuart et al. 2014 a, b, c ).

How can awareness be used to reduce stigma?

For example, Active Minds is an awareness-raising non-profit organization that targets students in universities with chapters across most of the USA, as well as in Canada, and Ecuador ( http://www.activeminds.org ). The goal is to reduce the stigma surrounding mental health issues by empowering students to speak openly about their mental health problems through student-run mental health awareness, education, and advocacy. They have designated October 5 as the National Day Without Stigma where they encourage students to watch their language, chalk their support (by chalking supportive messages about mental health across campuses), and reach out to someone who may be struggling with a mental health problem. By raising awareness about mental health they hope to create communities of support and promote help seeking. They also have a Stress Less Week, and Eating Disorders Awareness Week and Veterans and Mental Health initiative.

What is stigma in psychology?

When it is explicitly defined, Goffman's seminal conceptualization is often used, where stigma is an attribute that is deeply discrediting – one that taints the bearer and reduces their social value. By comparison, Thornicroft ( 2006) focus on three social psychological aspects of the problem: knowledge, attitudes, and behaviour, while Link and Phelan take a broader, socio-structural view. From this broader perspective, stigma exists when a number of components interact. First, people must distinguish and label a particular human difference (in this case mental illness) as socially salient, resulting in culturally derived categories that are used to differentiate people into groups. Second, labelled differences must be linked to a set of undesirable characteristics thus forming a negative cultural stereotype (or oversimplified characterization) that is summarily applied to every member of the group. Third, those who are so labelled and stereotyped are seen as fundamentally different from the dominant group, creating an ‘us-them’ demarcation. Fourth, stigmatized groups are socially devalued and systematically disadvantaged with respect to access to social and economic goods (such as income, education, housing status), creating poorer health and social outcomes. Discrimination may be experienced in the context of individual interactions, or it may be structural, when accumulated institutional practices create inequities. Finally, stigmatization is entirely contingent on access to social and economic power, as only powerful groups can fully disapprove and marginalize others.

What is stigma watch?

The StigmaWatch program operated since 1999 by SANE Australia is one example ( http://www.sane.org) of a protest-based activity. People with a mental illness, their friends and supporters identify stigmatizing images presented in the media and submit a complaint to SANE. The submission is reviewed using the national guidelines for media industry codes of conduct and, if the report is found to be inappropriate, StigmaWatch informs the media (or business) about the complaint and encourages an amendment or removal of the item. The tone of the letter is firm but respectful, acknowledging that people rarely mean to offend, acknowledging the media guidelines, and requesting that recipients use more responsible portrayals. The majority of recipients respond positively, are often embarrassed; apologize for any offence caused, and promise to think twice in the future. Only a few journalists have responded in negative and dismissive ways. In 2008, the proportion of StigmaWatch reports about the media portrayal of depression was 33%. By 2010, this had dropped to 10%, and has since remained at about 5%, suggesting that the program has been successful in improving media reporting (Hocking, 2013 ).

How can literacy help with mental illness?

Literacy programs try to improve knowledge about mental illnesses, their signs and symptoms, their treatments, and where to go to seek help on the assumption that reduced stigma will be a natural by-product. For example, beyondblue ( http://www.beyondblue.org.au ), a well-established Australian program, aims to reduce the impact of depression and anxiety in the population by: (a) increasing awareness of depression and anxiety, (b) reducing stigma and discrimination, (c) improving help seeking, (d) reducing the impact, disability and mortality, and (e) facilitating learning, collaboration, innovation and research. In this case, stigma reduction is not the primary outcome of interest, but a means to an end. As with awareness programs, an underlying assumption is that improved knowledge and awareness about stigma and discrimination will arm individuals to take appropriate action. For example, with respect to discrimination by the insurance industry in Australia, beyondblue undertook extensive research to document the scope and nature of the problem, then provided information on their web page indicating how insurance companies discriminate and what potential solutions could be implemented to resolve this problem. They also provided information on how individuals could get involved by lodging a complaint or an appeal and where to go for support and legal advice. However, it is not clear whether the information provided by beyondblue has resulted in increased insurance equity for people with a mental illness.

How does contact reduce stigma?

Allport first developed the idea that greater social contact with members of a stigmatized group could replace faulty perceptions and generalizations, and reduce prejudice and discrimination (Allport, 1954 ). Based on this theory, positive interpersonal contact has been used widely to reduce the stigmatization experienced by people with a mental illness. Corrigan and colleagues recently completed a meta-analysis of 72 outcome studies that used some form of personal contact to reduce stigmatization of people with a mental illness (Corrigan et al. 2012 ). Contact-based education was superior to other more traditional educational approaches in bringing about change. In the more rigorous studies (those that conducted randomized controlled trials), the effect of traditional didactic education in changing attitudes using Cohen's d was 0.21, indicating a weak effect, compared to 0.63 for contact-based education, representing a large effect. Behavioural intentions were more difficult to change, but contact was still superior, with a Cohen's d of 0.27 (representing a small effect), compared to 0.10 for education (representing a weak effect).

What was the second campaign for mental health?

The second campaign was undertaken by the Mental Health Commission of Canada's Opening Minds anti-stigma initiative (Stuart et al. 2014 a, b, c ). Various media sources were used to transmit messages emphasizing treatment and recovery, including first-person accounts of people who had experienced a mental illness. Major newspapers, television commercials during prime time television, and social networking were used. No appreciable improvements on any of the survey items were noted. For example, about one-third of the sample agreed that people with a mental illness could make a complete recovery – one of the central messages of the campaign. This increased by only 1.1%. Over half of the sample considered that the average Canadian would feel somewhat or very uncomfortable socializing with someone with a mental illness and this did not change. Based on these results, the program reconsidered the role of media messaging as the main intervention strategy and instead opted for a more intensive and targeted approach to stigma reduction.