"Teachers: Nikki neuron reminds you to check the standards tables in the front of the toolkit to see which ones apply for this lesson and your subject area."
Understanding Stigma Surrounding Depression and Mental Health Issues
There is a great deal of stigma that surrounds mental health issues. Stigma refers to a cluster of negative attitudes and beliefs that motivate the general public to fear, reject, avoid and discriminate against people with mental illness.1 These negative attitudes may cause discrimination, isolation, devaluing, and other problems for persons with mental illness. Having good mental health enables one to make good decisions and deal with life’s challenges in an appropriate manner. However, individuals who are mentally ill sometimes behave in ways that are atypical; that is, they may act and/or appear different than the norm and are perceived as mentally unhealthy. As a result, people are uncomfortable about mental health problems and stigmatize, or exclude, those perceived as mentally ill. Most times, people who react this way do not mean to be cruel – they simply do not understand.
One source of stigma is the different view in society of mental illness, compared to heart disease, cancer, or other physical illnesses. Inaccuracies and falsehoods have led people to believe that an individual with a mental health problem has a weak character or is potentially dangerous. This prejudice manifests in distrust, fear, embarrassment, anger and/or avoidance. Stigma isolates the mentally ill; others may avoid living and working with, renting to, or employing someone with a mental disorder, especially if severe, such as schizophrenia.1,2 For an individual suffering from mental illness, these kinds of reactions may lead to low self-esteem, loss of dignity, loneliness, and hopelessness. The stigma against mental illness also has a negative impact on attitudes related to care for the mentally ill. Society tends to be less compassionate towards those suffering from mental illness, compared to physical sickness, and thus is less willing to pay for treatment for mental illness.
What else is in Chapter 8?
See below for a summary of what you will find in the rest of the Teacher's Guide.
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Also in this section
- Roots of Stigma of Mental Illness
- What Are the Effects of Stigma
- How Do We Erase Stigma?
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