Introduction:
Stigma is based by society’s condemnation of one’s characteristics, beliefs and behaviours which do not fit in with social norms. Mental illness has been stigmatised in a negative way as people believe they are violent, uncontrollable and incompetent people. Society’s understanding of mental illness is highly limited and there is a need to learn to understand what stigma means and how they can help to assist and influence the recovery process. The key aspects discussed are that of understanding stigma and recovery and the influence stigma has on the recovery process.
Body:
Many people do not completely understand how harmful and challenging stigma can be to the person suffering from a mental illness. It can contribute to extra stresses that can double the effect of their illness tremendously. Goffman (1967) defined social stigma as “the overt or covert disapproval expressed by a society of the personal characteristics, beliefs, behaviours, or conditions that are believed by that society to be at odds with social or cultural norms.” An illustration of this is the challenges of stereotypes and prejudices that result from misconceptions about mental illness. For example playing them out to be violent dehumanises their sense of being as they become feared and ridiculed by society. While this is the case within society there is also self-stigma with the person suffering from mental illness turn against themselves with prejudice which adds yet another stressful hurdle to leap over. These two examples of stigma demonstrates how a person with mental illness can be robbed of opportunities that defines a quality of life whether it be with maintaining a good job, safe housing or having satisfactory health care.
Equally important to understanding stigma is to understand the process of recovery and the barriers to recovery.
Understanding of Recovery
Discussion of the influence of stigma on recovery – the influence could be the barrier to recovery, strategies for changing society’s stigma, talk about the important role media plays within portraying mental illness
References:
Hungerford, C 2012, ‘An introduction for health professionals’, in Mental health care, Queensland, Australia, Stigma, Goffman (1967), pp. 8
NSW Consumer Advisory Group 2009, Literature review on recovery. Developing a recovery oriented service provider resource for community organisations literature. http://www.sane.org/stigmawatch/what-is-stigma - stigma http://apt.rcpsych.org/content/6/1/65.full - stigma http://www.nursingtimes.net/nursing-practice/clinical-zones/mental-health/how-does-stigma-affect-people-with-mental-illness/5046801.article - stigma, MEDIA section http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1489832/ - strategies to changing public stigma https://www.health.gov.au/internet/publications/publishing.nsf/Content/mental-pubs-n-servst10-toc~mental-pubs-n-servst10-pri - Recovery, aus goverment dep. Of health http://www.mhrecovery.com/definition.htm - recovery http://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/help-information/mental-health-a-z/R/recovery/ - recovery http://ps.psychiatryonline.org/article.aspx?articleID=86820 - barriers to recovery http://www.nswcag.org.au/files//our_work/projects/nsw_cag__mhcc_project_-_recovery_literature_review.pdf - recovery, literature review, MUST USE ! http://www2.eit.ac.nz/library/ls_guides_sentencestarters.html - essay planner
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
Pike continues to explain that there are treatments that have been developed and work, ‘tested and demonstrated to help the majority of people across the spectrum of disorders.’ However the stigma surrounding mental health disorders is one of the main obstacles faced, ‘this stigma is the single greatest obstacle to improving the lives of millions of people with mental disorder around the globe.’ Although she states that many have argued that it is in fact…
- 1834 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
“Stigma is a social construction that defines people in terms of a distinguishing characteristic or mark and devalues them as a consequence.”(Dinos Socratis) There is an undeniable stigma associated with people that have mental illnesses, in society they are treated differently and are even sometimes discriminated. The feeling of being stigmatized often times has negative effects on the lives of those individuals such as “depressive symptoms and demoralisation; poorer interpersonal relationships; and prevention from recovery or avoidance of help-seeking.” (Dinos Socratis)…
- 793 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
Mental health patients are fighting an uphill battle from the very start of their treatment. To fight a mental battle would be an unimaginable challenge, one which can take years still with no prevail. Stigma is one thing that can break down this treatment. A patient who is working their absolute very hardest to overcome their mental illness does not to be stigmatized by the outside community. The last thing a recovering mental health patient needs is stigma. The effects of stigma can be life threatening. For example, one with an issue such as…
- 1388 Words
- 6 Pages
Good Essays -
The social stigma that comes with mental illness is often more disabling than the illness itself. The labels attributed to those who are mentally ill are not only discriminating but also isolating; those perceived less than able are kept and ignored. However, there are organizations that advocates and helps to integrate these most vulnerable individuals into our society, and that is what made this clinical rotation at Friendship special.…
- 567 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
First, to combat stigma, I would educate the community through public service announcements. Frequently, we refer to people with mental health disorders as their illness. For example, it is common practice to call a person with schizophrenia, a “schizophrenic”; so, it further stigmatizing to the person and damages their personhood. In contrast, persons with heart disease or diabetes are not labeled by their disease. For this…
- 556 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Stigma is typically viewed as something disgraceful. When I think of groups who are stigmatized of think of people who suffer from mental illnesses. People often think that people who suffer from mental illness are dangerous. For example, alcoholism is a mental illness that we the correct treatment can be fixed. However, most people think of people who suffer from alcoholism as deviant and bad people. Other mental illness like eating disorders and schizophrenia deserve compassion and understanding. Because of the stigma they face they do not always receive the compassion they deserve and need to heal.…
- 233 Words
- 1 Page
Satisfactory Essays -
The stigma around mental health not only comes from society, the media, or our peers, but it can also come from within. People may also avoid the stigma of mental illness because of stigma’s potential effects on one’s sense of self. Research shows that people with mental illness often internalize stigmatizing ideas that are widely endorsed within society and believe that they are less valued because of their psychiatric disorder (Corrigan, 2004).…
- 305 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
Illness is something that is an inevitable part of our lives. It is rare that you could find an individual that has not been affected by illness, either directly with their own diagnoses or indirectly with the illness of a loved one. Having any sort of illness causes immense strain on an individual as well as their family unit; but what happens when a person is suffering from an illness in silence and shame? Mental illness affects 1 out of every 5 individuals in Canada and does not discriminate according to age, education level, or occupation. The issue that I want to discuss however is not mental illness it is the stigma associated with it that causes added stereotypes and shame for the people who are suffering. In the dictionary stigma is defined as a mark of disgrace or infamy; a stain or reproach as on one 's reputation. Ultimately stigma is made up of two parts: negative and unfavourable attitudes and negative behaviours that result from those attitudes. People with mental illness often experience stigmatization surrounding many aspects of their lives; inequality in employment, educational, and housing opportunities, the loss of friends and family members, as well as self-stigma which occurs when the person with mental illness begins to buy into the negative stereotypes. One can not imagine someone suffering from cancer having to feel shame and disgrace from their diagnoses, so why is it accepted that someone diagnosed with schizophrenia or depression sustains an automatic threat to their reputation. Society feels uncomfortable with mental illness, causing it to become the elephant in the room and in turn brushing human beings with real problems under a societal rug. Due to inaccuracies and misunderstandings, people have been led to believe that an individual with a mental illness has a weak character or is inevitably dangerous. If…
- 1554 Words
- 7 Pages
Powerful Essays -
In recent years, there has been considerable research which was looking into various topics in relation to stigma and schizophrenia and the extent to which they are valid. Population surveys demonstrate that despite increased awareness of the nature, yet many individuals among the public tend to still…
- 781 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
Mental disorders have significant health, social and economic impact to people globally. Recent evidence from high-income countries suggests that people with mental disorders die 15 to 20 years earlier.17 This is because of factors like suicide and co-morbidity with the physical illness such as CHD and cancer.9, 17-21 On the other hand, previous studies have shown that people with mental disorders are stigmatized, discriminated against and abused, by the society. 22 The ways societies react towards people with mental disorders subject them to homelessness or living in unhygienic condition and exclusion from participation in social, educational and employment opportunities in the community. 20, 23-25 Mental disorders not only cause a debilitating…
- 176 Words
- 1 Page
Satisfactory Essays -
In professional workplace settings, stigma may be more concealed; however it is likely to manifest itself as negative judgements and stereotyping which can lead to unfair job allocation (Rüsch et al. 2014). One area that has been studied in depth with regards to mental health stigma is the armed forces (Sharp et al. 2015). Military culture enforces the idea that the service men and woman should be mentally resilient to emotional hardship (Quartana et al. 2014). Historically, soldiers who were suffering with Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were considered “cowards” and were shamed (Pividori 2014). Social exploration has also shown that certain cultures may actively increase their distance, both physically and socially from those who are known to have a mental illness (Ando, Yamaguchi, Aoki and Thornicroft 2013). There have been cases of patients being disowned by their family upon diagnosis (Earnshaw, Smith and Copenhaver 2013). Again, this is thought to be due to a lack of education around mental health (Mehta 2015) and instead judgements are based on outdated ideas and customs (Link and Phelan…
- 1331 Words
- 6 Pages
Good Essays -
Many people struggle with their mental health but a high percentage of people are unwilling to seek help because of the stigma; the concern of being labelled. People who receive support for mental illness have rated stigma and discrimination at par with the mental illness itself. Patricia Deegan, one of the dual professionals in the first article, said she was subjected to discrimination, stigma, disrespect and dehumanisation. People living with mental illness feel disempowered, not only as a result of the diagnosis but by their own acceptance of the stereotype of someone experiencing mental illness. They may be driven to associate themselves with incapacity worthlessness and so they exclude themselves socially due to anticipatory stigma. Empowerment aids recovery and this is one of the tenets of recovery-oriented approach. One way to empower service users is involving them in decisions about their recovery. Another way is to encourage them to participate in peer support; being of assistance to others is likely to increase their confidence and promote enhanced outcome and recovery (Warner, 2010). Recovery and social inclusion are closely linked. Services need to do more to empower service users to live their lives as they normally would and regain their place in the community (Mental Health…
- 1095 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
Self-stigma has long been an issue and consequence for people suffering from a mental illness, despite an increased understanding of diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders, negative attitudes and misperceptions about those living with mental disorders are still prominent today (Ward, 2014). When individuals are faced with the onset of a mental illness such as schizophrenia, stereotypes become more relevant to the self. That is, those suffering from the mental illness may choose to incorporate the prejudice and stereotypes that society has constructed into their own self-concept. This is because ideas about ourselves are often profoundly shaped by how we believe others see us, therefore one’s self-concept can be viewed as a social-construct…
- 334 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
This is shown by the general feeling of discomfort felt by most Americans around people with mental disorders and the lack of federal funding for mental hospitals, along with the media’s focus on mental illness as a factor in crime (Ungar). Despite the prevalence of this stigma, there are various tactics that can be used to reduce it and change the general public’s attitude, such as protests, education, and contact. The only way that the stigma can truly be eradicated, though, is to treat mental illnesses like what they are: an…
- 1513 Words
- 7 Pages
Better Essays -
Mental illnesses are not only a social stigma, they are considered a part-time “hell on earth”. This is why it’s so hard for mental patients to cope with life’s everyday activities because simply, they see things differently from what you see.…
- 1156 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays