Mental Health Stigmas Essay

When the average person hears the word “schizophrenia” the image of a murderous man or woman in a straightjacket or a suicidal individual ranting on about hallucinations and killing can come to mind. Those are some of the many stigmas and stereotypes that prevent the mentally ill from receiving treatment and seeking help, due to a lack of awareness and the amount of treatment available. With more awareness and treatment, stigmas would be reduced along with harmful behavior. Although some people argue that treatment does not help the mentally ill and that treating mental illnesses is not important, treatment is needed and awareness must be spread because studies show that both are necessary.
To understand the issue at hand, one must first know what exactly a mental illness is, and the history of funding for mental illness awareness and treatment. One in five adults in the U.S. has a mental illness, a treatable “health [condition] involving changes in thinking, emotion or
Stigmas against mental illnesses are very prominent and harmful; mainly because of “media stereotypes and lack of education” (MSW). If funding was increased and given to mental illness awareness programs, those stigmas would decrease and people would become more educated. According to the Mental Health Foundation, nine out of ten people with mental illnesses say that stigmas about mental disorders can make “difficulties worse and make it harder to recover” and “ have a negative effect on their lives” (Stigma). As a result, said stigmas put a lot of stress on the mentally ill and make life more difficult. If awareness and education about mental illnesses was increased to help eradicate those stigmas, life and recovery would be made easier for those who are mentally ill. Stigmas are a big problem in the mentally ill community but can be eliminated by funding awareness and education