Stigma has major negative impacts on health and well-being, which helps explain why only 18% of people with drug use disorders receive treatment for their addiction. Stigma impedes access to care and reduces the quality of care individuals receive.
Does stigma prevent people from seeking treatment for substance abuse?
Substance abuse treatment is an effective way to break free from drugs or alcohol, but the stigma that surrounds seeking out treatment might prevent some people from getting the help they need. A recent research review published in the journal Substance Abuse and Rehabilitation looked at the effects of stigma on people who abuse drugs and alcohol.
What are the effects of drug stigma?
Stigma results in prejudice, avoidance, rejection, and discrimination against people who have a socially undesirable trait or engage in culturally marginalized behaviors, such as drug use (Link, 2001). Family, friends and the general public can carry negative feelings about drug use or behavior.
How do you deal with the stigma of drug labels?
The labels themselves carry a stigma, and some people may avoid longer stints in treatment or any form of treatment at all, lest they be considered part of that group. Non-judgmental attitudes from staff at a rehabilitation facility seemed to have a strong ability to counter the negative effects of stigma.
How can we reduce stigma in rehabilitation?
Non-judgmental attitudes from staff at a rehabilitation facility seemed to have a strong ability to counter the negative effects of stigma. A caring, compassionate staff reduced self-stigma and negative emotions about treatment, showing the strong impact that the right residential program can have.
How does stigma affect drug users?
Some of us respond to social as well as physical punishments by turning to substances to alleviate our pain. The humiliating rejection experienced by people who are stigmatized for their drug use acts as a powerful social punishment, driving them to continue and perhaps intensify their drug-taking.
What are some stigmas associated with addiction?
The stigma of addiction comes from the negative feelings that many health care professionals harbor for people struggling with substance use disorders, and their beliefs that poor personal choices, “moral failing,” and defects of character are to blame for the disease.
What factors influence stigma in substance use disorder?
FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE STIGMABlame. ... Stereotypes of Dangerousness and Unpredictability. ... Knowledge about Mental and Substance Use Disorders. ... Contact and Experience. ... Media Portrayals. ... Race, Ethnicity, and Culture.
How does stigma affect recovery?
Stigma can negatively impact someone's mental health, self-image, and self-confidence. It can make someone feel depressed and lead to the denial of opportunities. These aspects of a person's psychology are vital for them to recover from a substance abuse disorder.
How can stigma affect people's willingness to seek treatment?
Consequences of Stigma This fear of being “found out” causes people to avoid seeking treatment, fail to take medications, isolate, and lose self-esteem. Studies show prejudice and discrimination against those who are mentally ill is pervasive and often as debilitating as the illness itself.
How can we change the stigma about addiction?
Removing the StigmaGet to know more. Just like heart disease impacts the heart, addiction results in physiological changes in the brain. ... Talk about it. Discussing addiction helps humanize the disease and shows recovery is possible.Show compassion. If you notice any signs of addiction, say something.
How many types of stigma are there?
Literature identifies multiple dimensions or types of mental health-related stigma, including self-stigma, public stigma, professional stigma, and institutional stigma.
How does stigma affect?
The harmful effects of stigma feelings of shame, hopelessness and isolation. reluctance to ask for help or to get treatment. lack of understanding by family, friends or others. fewer opportunities for employment or social interaction.
What causes stigma in mental health?
Stigma often comes from lack of understanding or fear. Inaccurate or misleading media representations of mental illness contribute to both those factors.
What is stigma in recovery?
The term stigma is used to refer to false negative beliefs that are widespread about a topic or a group of people. Examples of addiction stigma include: Addiction is a choice. People who use drugs have no willpower. People who abuse alcohol are selfish and don't care about their loved ones.
What is self stigmatization?
Self-stigmatization has been defined as the process in which a person with a mental health diagnosis becomes aware of public stigma, agrees with those stereotypes, and internalizes them by applying them to the self (Corrigan, Larson, & Kuwabara, 2010).
How do you address self stigma?
As you can see, there are a lot of negative ways that self-stigma can impact us....How to Address and Overcome Self-StigmaRemember that you're not alone. One in four Americans lives with a mental illness. ... Talk openly about mental health and speak out about stigma. ... Alter your own stigmatizing beliefs. ... Seek support.
Why do people develop self stigma?
Self-stigma develops when a person with a substance abuse problem internalizes those negative messages from caregivers or society in general. This can lead to self-doubt about the possible success of treatment and self-questioning about whether treatment is ...
What are the barriers to stigma?
Some things that the researchers identified as having a greater effect than stigma include: Not recognizing the existence or extent of the drug or alcohol problem. Not being ready to stop using drugs or alcohol.
Why do people avoid treatment?
In most cases, stigma isn’t the main reason people cite for avoiding treatment. The review found cases where study participants ranked stigma anywhere from the most to the 8th-most-relevant barrier. In cases where stigma was on a list of possible barriers, participants also listed plenty of other things. Some things that the researchers identified as having a greater effect than stigma include: 1 Not recognizing the existence or extent of the drug or alcohol problem 2 Not being ready to stop using drugs or alcohol 3 Having other negative attitudes about treatment
Why do people avoid seeking help?
Public stigma comes from society as a whole and involves general attitudes about substance abuse that often cause people to avoid seeking help because they feel embarrassment or shame about their problem.
Is stigma discrimination?
In some cases, stigma involves blatant discrimination. In others, it occurs more subtly and may be harder to identify. People might experience stigma for the actual drug or alcohol use, or they might be stigmatized for the act of going to rehab. Nonetheless, in this review, the researchers identified a few types of stigma that could prevent people from seeking out or accessing treatment.
Does stigma affect treatment seeking?
The authors found a wide range of effects across the 64 studies reviewed, and they found that stigma probably has some impact on treatment-seeking but isn’t necessarily ...
What is stigma in addiction?
The Stigma of Addiction. Stigma is defined as “a mark of disgrace associated with a particular circumstance, quality, or person.”. All too often, there tends to be stigma around behaviors and actions that are viewed as different and outside the acceptable norm. An example of this are the negative misconceptions that surround people struggling ...
How many people work with mental illness?
62% will work with someone who has a mental illness, whereas only 22% will work with someone who has a drug addiction. 64% feel that employers should be able to deny employment to people with a drug addiction, compared to 25% for people with mental illness.
Definition
Introduction
- We live in a society where millions of Americans are dependent on drugs or alcohol and only a small percentage receive treatment at a facility. In fact, the 2014 National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that 21.5 Americans age 12 and older had a substance use disorder in the previous year; however, sadly only 2.5 million received the specialized treatment they needed.
Society and culture
- Stigma affects all of us and nearly everyone has felt stigmatized or has stigmatized others at some point in their lives. In a study done by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the general public was more likely to have negative attitudes towards those dealing with drug addiction than those who were dealing with mental illness. Additionally, researchers found that …
Prevention
- Becoming dependent on drugs can happen to anyone. Its important to keep in mind that we can all do a better job of decreasing stigma around drug use. Effective ways for individuals to help reduce stigma include:
Healthcare
- Perceived stigma in hospitals or doctors offices can discourage people from accessing needed healthcare services. Having a trusted primary care doctor is associated with maintaining well-being and a good quality of life. However, studies have found that some healthcare providers feel uncomfortable when working with people who are dependent on drugs. In a study of nurses attit…
Benefits
- In order to better support people with substance use disorders, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) includes benefits for addiction treatment. People who have Medicaid or purchase plans through the health exchanges are eligible for treatment services, including psychotherapy and counseling. Plans vary, and some have limits on the number of days or visits covered, how much of the dedu…
Access
- The problem of access to treatment even extends into the criminal justice system. A study conducted by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) found that of the 2.3 million people incarcerated in the United States, more than 65% of them met the criteria for a substance abuse disorder, yet only 11% of those people received treatment (CASA, 2010).
Controversy
- Unfortunately, stigma can affect the publics perception of evidence-based harm reduction strategies. Harm reduction refers to public health interventions like: Due to widespread stigma about those who use drugs and who suffer from addiction, however, these interventions are not usually supported by the public and believed by some to facilitate and encourage drug use despi…