Silenced by Stigma

Although I initially learned of my illness over twenty years ago, this weblog is my first attempt at publicly acknowledging it. And even this attempt at being more open is still limited as I've chosen not to use my last name on this blog. Why? I, along with millions of others who have “mental illness,” have been silenced by stigma. Even today, when I've gained enough personal self-esteem that I don't mind(quite so much) what other people think of me, I have to remain aware of how public knowledge of my illness could affect my family. Since I'm not willing to subject them to ridicule or place them in a position where they need to defend my “sanity,” I still feel the need to be careful.

The ongoing stigma and sense of shame surrounding mental illness seems strange in light of the following statistics from the National Institute of Mental Health, which is the largest scientific organization in the world dedicated to the research, treatment and prevention of mental disorders.

Mental Illness in Adults:
20% of Americans or 1 in 5 people over the age of 18, suffer from a mental disorder in a given year
4 of the 10 leading causes of disability(major depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and obsessive-compulsive disorder) are mental illnesses.
3% of the population have more than 1 mental illness at a time.
5% of adults are affected so seriously by mental illness that it interferes with their ability to function in society(those affected by severe and persistent depression, panic disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and obsessive-compulsive disorder)
20% of doctor's appointments are related to anxiety disorders such as panic attacks.
8 million people have depression each year.
2 million Americans have schizophrenia disorders and 300,000 new cases are diagnosed each year.

http://science.education.nih.gov/supplements/nih5/mental/guide/info-mental-a.htm

So why does our society still place such a stigma on mental illness over other illnesses such as Diabetes, Heart disease, Lyme disease etc., even though it is so prevalent? An article from the Mayo Clinic, the world's largest, non-profit group medical practice offers some possible answers. The article titled “Mental illness and stigma:Coping with the ridicule,” attributes the use of the word mental in the classification as part of the problem. They relate that by making a distinction between mental and physical illnesses, the terms suggest that mental illnesses are not a legitimate medical condition, although the majority of them do indeed have a biological basis. This causes people who do not have mental illnesses to believe that those affected are to blame and that they should “just get over it,” or that their problems are, “all in their heads.”
Another primary reason given for the ongoing stigma is fear. The article relates that previous media and network portrayals of people with mental illness has encouraged societies perception that people with these diseases are “dangerous,” and “unpredictable,” even though this connection between violence and mental illness is not statistically supported. In our society, though, the media and networks hold a lot of sway over the publics' attitudes and opinions.

There is, however, light on the horizon. From what I have noticed, there is an active campaign by the networks and celebrities to dispel the myths and stigma surrounding mental illnesses. Recently, I have seen Mike Wallace and Brooke Shields speak about their problems with depression as well as Linda Hamilton and Jane Pauley discuss their struggles with bipolar disorders. Additionally, more prime-time network programs are openly dealing with mental illnesses as a family issue through their characters. Both Law and Order CI and Criminal Minds feature main characters who have a family member that has a mental illness, thus showing that those affected by these diseases are someone's loved one, not just some “crazy,” stranger. Hopefully, the next step in this area of awareness will be for the actual main character of such a show to be portrayed as being intelligent, successful and having mental illness. US A's Monk has taken a step in this direction, by showing that a man with obsessive-compulsive disorder is still intelligent and can function as a crime solver, but the comedic format of the show, and the extremely unusual severity of the OCD portrayed, I believe, prevents real promotion of social awareness.

More information on how to cope with and combat the stigma around mental illnesses is available at:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/mental-health/MH00076