Stigmatization in the Real World Today

Let’s be honest. Mental health stigmas, stereotypes, and biases exist largely in the world today. Yes, we are working to talk more freely about mental health and the way it affects each one of us, but there is still more work that can be done. Today, I’m going to tackle some of those issues we call stigmas.

1. Mental health hospitals. When people talk about mental hospitals, they automatically assume that crazy people go there. It’s like an asylum but with a different name. When they say “that person is mental” in today’s culture, it has assumed a connotation of crazy. Therefore, when you put mental hospital together, it means crazy place where crazy, unstable people go to be locked up. That is not what a mental health hospital is at all. I like to call them mental health hospitals because that is what they are. They are places people can go to be treated properly for their mental health issues along with learning how to combat the struggles they face everyday. Usually, people go to these when they don’t know what else to do and get into a very serious, dark place in their lives. This is an monumental mark of reaching out for help. Help is something that should not be seen as weak. Rather, it should be seen as strong, brave, and gutsy. Today even, the hospitals label themselves as “behavioral hospitals” because they deal with all types of people. The last hospital I went to was divided into two wings: substance abuse and mental wellness. People come in with all types of illnesses, including anger problems, depression and anxiety of all kinds, bipolar type I or II or unspecified, schizophrenia and the varieties of that like schizoaffective disorder. Some struggle with unhealthy coping mechanisms like drugs and alcohol. Don’t shame us for getting help. We are taking steps to improve our lives. There is nothing wrong with that.

2. Cigarette companies targeting mental health patients. It has been proven that the cigarette company especially targets mental health patients because a staggeringly large amount of them smoke to take the edge off. 3/4 of the adults at the mental health hospital I last went to smoked cigarettes. I mean they even had smoke breaks! How crazy is that?! My dad says they have that, even though it’s a bad habit, because it’s a stress reliever. They are at the hospital because they are stressed. By not giving them their cigarettes, it makes them more stressed. Plus, it can lead to withdrawals. The doctors, nurses, and therapists aren’t there to force them not to have cigarettes, they are there to tell them it’s unhealthy and show other ways to cope. Just like cigarette companies target poor neighborhoods and specific races like African American, they feel like they can heavily market to mental health patients even when they are telling them lies. The basis behind this strategy all boils down to money. They don’t care if it hurts people and their health, causes an addiction, and ends up doing more harm than so thought good. All they care is that money comes rolling in. We need to speak out about this injustice and biased targeting. We need to let these cigarette companies know that it is not okay and that we won’t put up with it any longer. That is what we can do. They need to realize that what they are doing is shameful and degrading. They must redirect their aim to the general public rather than a specific population.

3. “You are just being dramatic and overreacting.” People often don’t believe that other people are struggling with a mental illness like depression for example. They say they are just overreacting or being dramatic and will get over it in a couple of days. By people not realizing the gravity of this issue and how key mental health is to a person, it can lead to extreme damage. Even though you can’t see it because it goes on inside your brain, doesn’t mean it’s not real. It is just as real as any other illness and can become a crippling sickness if not properly treated and assessed. Mental illness can’t be cured, but it can be treated and controlled if you balance out your lifestyle into a holistic, healthy one. A lifestyle where you are getting proper and healthy nutrition, exercise, sleep; taking your medication consistently if you take some; using coping skills daily and especially at times of distress; and talking to psychiatrists, therapists, and people in your life about what you are going through and how it is making you feel.

4. The regular based assumptions and stigmas that people conclude to when it comes to mental health. People have a natural set of assumptions they place on people if they have a certain mental health diagnosis. If you’re depressed, you’re suicidal. If you’re anxious, you’re overreacting. If you’re bipolar or schizophrenic, you’re crazy. If you’re an alcoholic or drug user, you’re weak and have no self-control. The list goes on. These stigmas exist because we have let society warp mental health patients into a confined box. The world automatically assumes if people struggle with ____, then they are ____. People fail to realize that every person is different. Just because we have a diagnosis does not mean we are all the same. Yes, we might have similar symptoms or struggle with similar issues, but that does not mean our brain responds the same way. Some of us may have greater chemical imbalances within our brain than others. People take a variety of different medication combinations making them feel differently. People react to situations all kinds of ways. Since the patient can’t always show or fully explain what thoughts are going on inside their heads, the doctor has to go off their word. The diagnosis of what mental illnesses are (ex: what depression is) arise from common symptoms that the patients report to doctors. Often times though, a person can struggle with several mental illnesses at once. Depression and anxiety usually go hand in hand. Bipolar and depression can also be a combination in someone. It all depends on the person and how they’re wired. People need to realize that we are more than our illnesses. We are whole people who just happen to struggle with an illness.

5. “Since I’m sad, then I have depression too.” People need to understand the difference between sadness and depression. Just because you are sad about something that may have happened in your life like a sudden death, loss of relationship, heartbreak, etc. does not mean you have depression. Sadness is temporary. Depression is long-lasting and caused by a chemical imbalance inside your brain. It can be triggered by a traumatic event or it can come from nowhere. It may be caused by genetics. It all just depends. Everyone gets sad at times about something in life because life can be really hard sometimes. Depression is where your brain is not adequately balancing key neurotransmitters like serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine. These neurotransmitters play a key role in mood regulation.

6. Stress and anxiety are not the same. Stress can actually be healthy. The appropriate amount of stress in one’s life can actually be what guides and pushes people to achieve things. It acts as motivation. When that stress becomes too much though and starts to overtake your life, then it jumps over to anxiety. You stop doing things because you are so afraid of what could happen. You are so distraught with doubt that it prevents you from ever acting. You end up closing yourself off. All you have going on in your mind is worry, worry, stress, anxiety, worry. You can’t function anymore because you have too much stress to where you can’t handle it. Soon, it becomes panic attacks. Your fight or flight mechanisms start to kick in. You stay in your room all the time because you are afraid to face the outside world. This is anxiety because your stress has severely heightened to the point that your mind believes everything is impossible.

These are some of the many stigmas I see in today’s world associated with mental health. If you can think of some other stigmas that are placed on mental health, I would really love it if you could put it down in the comments below. Then, I could even add it to my list and give you credit. What I want is to start a conversation rather than have me talk all the time. I want to hear other people’s experiences, struggles, stories, and victories in their own life when it comes to mental health. Remember, we can break down the barriers and eliminate the stigmas. If you want change to happen, it first has to start with you. Be open to talking to people about your mental health. Make it an open rather than behind closed doors conversation. Education is a key component to overcoming ignorance. Educate those who don’t know much about mental health or have false preconceived notions about it. You can do this. Talk to me if you want or need to! I’m here for you. All the best.

Sincerely,

Bethany