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THE DESTIGMATIZATION OF MENTAL HEALTH

The Destigmatization Of Mental Health

A good student

Department of Nursing, Stanbridge University

English 2020: Advanced Witten Communication

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THE DESTIGMATIZATION OF MENTAL HEALTH
Abstract

Many people struggling with their mental health do not understand their struggles because of

being untreated or undiagnosed. Therefore, mental health awareness is beneficial to understand

the different symptoms, seeking professional help as a result, mental health resources will be

readily available and most importantly destigmatizing mental health. Stigma makes people feel

ashamed and embarrassed over a condition that is out of their control. As a result, most people

living with a mental condition do not seek help in fear of what society might think of them.

There needs to be more resources available such as a greater ratio of mental health facilities and

professionals to those living with a mental health condition. More awareness and educating both

people living with a mental health condition and those that do not have any condition will be

beneficial to society. By destigmatizing mental health conditions more people will be able to

seek help and live a healthier and more happy life.

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Destigmatize Mental Health

Mental health affects the way one thinks, the way one acts, and the way one feels. Mental

health determines how a person handles stress and how they interact with other people. It also

determines the choices they make in life. Poor mental health is often associated with bad choices

and unhealthy habits. Mental health is vital throughout one’s life from adolescent stages to all

throughout one’s adulthood. Many people with mental health symptoms are often undiagnosed

because they are unfamiliar with the symptoms or they are ashamed of their symptoms therefore

they do not reach out for help. Without the proper treatment or help it can lead to long term

effects and a cycle which is hard to break. Mental health sufferers often struggle with untreated

or undiagnosed illnesses. The stigma of being crazy or violent encourages patients to stay quiet

instead of seeking help. Through bringing awareness to mental health more people will be

educated on the symptoms, increase the number of patients in treatment as a result

promote available resources and destigmatize the words mental health.

Background

Even prior to the pandemic access to quality and affordable mental health care was very

limited. There is a limited numbers of mental health facilities to the ratio of people who needs

the care. The pandemic has taken a toll on society in one way or another and mental health is

even more vital more so than ever. In addition to the lack of affordable and quality care comes

along the stigma behind mental health. With the COVID-19 pandemic on top of daily issues one

faces, the challenge of maintaining good mental health is even harder. According to the World

Health Organization more than 700,000 people around the world commit suicide a year due to

poor mental health (World Health Organization, 2021). The National Institute of Mental Health
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states that in the United States alone one in every five adults lives with a mental illness, that is

51.5 million people (National Institute of Mental Health, 2019). There are many different

conditions to mental health and various degrees of severity, ranging from minor to moderate to

severe conditions. There is no cookie cutter model for mental health conditions, it varies from

person to person and it effects each individual differently. Mental health is defined by the

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as “our emotional, psychological and social well-

being. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make healthy choices”

(Centers For Disease Control And Prevention, 2021). Mental health not only controls how one

acts or feels but it also helps people handle situations in a wisely manner.

Now more than ever with the pandemic and being cooped up in the house it is crucial to

focus on improving and understanding mental health, and the acceptance of mental health

conditions. It is considerably hard not being able to see loved ones and no social interaction

because of the shelter in place. With a lack of social interaction, it does take a toll on one’s

mental health. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states mental health is the most

common health issue in the United States and one in 25 people are living with mental illness

such as bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, stress, anxiety and depression. With such

a high number of people living with a mental health illness it is of upmost importance to raise

awareness and destigmatize mental health. Stigma is a negative connotation attached to a person

since it is out of the norm of society. Society place shame on people who has a mental illness.

For example, a label and a stereotype associated with depression is lazy. People who try to seek

out help from a therapist is considered crazy thus with these negative connotations and stigma

most do not reach out to get the help and treatment they need. An article by Debate et al. (2018)
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describes the effects of stigma such as internalizing negative thoughts, isolation, low self-esteem,

feeling lost and hopeless, shame, avoid seeking out treatment, etc.

Symptoms Of Mental Health

Many people who have poor mental health do not understand their struggles. Nor do they

know the signs and symptoms associated with mental health. As a result, making unhealthy

decisions such as drugs or alcohol to cope with their struggles. Some common symptoms are

feelings of sadness and extreme mood changes of being happy one minute and then sad the next

minute. One can find it hard to concentrate while doing daily routines. In an article by Shi et al.

describes symptoms such as low energy and always being tired but the main reason why is

sleeping problems caused by poor mental health (Shi et al. 2020). Another misconception is

withdrawals from friends and family as if one is just having a bad day and wants to be left alone,

but it occurs time and time again creating a cycle. Changes in eating habits is associated with just

having a craving for junk food but the reoccurrence creates an unhealthy lifestyle and further

causes detrimental effects to one mental and physical health. Shi et al. also states turning to

drugs and alcohol, people often seek alcohol to unwind for the day but for those dealing with a

mental illness uses it as an unhealthy way to cope thus resulting to an addiction (Shi et al. 2020).

The most detrimental effect of a mental health condition is suicide. According to the National

Alliance on Mental Illness and illustrated in the figure below, 46% of people who died as a result

of suicide had a mental health condition and 90% who died by suicide had symptoms of a mental

health condition (National Alliance on Mental Illness, 2021).

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Access To Professional Help

Poor mental health not only affects mental health but physical health as well therefore if

one becomes aware of their symptoms, they can get the proper care they need as a result with

more people advocating and seeking help, there will be more resources readily available. In

Stuart (2016) states that on average $2 US dollars per capita is spent on mental healthcare and

less than 25 cents in low-income countries (Stuart, 2016). Stuart also mentions half of the

world’s population only has one psychiatrist for every 200,000 citizen (Stuart, 2016). Just those

statistics alone, which highlights the gap between mental health and the lack of necessary

resources needed to treat and prevent mental health conditions. More money is put into health

care for people with physical disability but not into mental health conditions. Both physical and

mental health is equally important. With physical and mental health being of equal importance,

more must be done to bridge the gap of financial and therapeutic services.
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Destigmatizing Mental Health

Mental health comes with its own stigmas. throughout the years, society has coined

mental health as a violent disease. This stigma has played a roll in keeping mental health

sufferers from seeking help when needed. The fear of being labeled crazy or violent has forced

mental health patients to hide their disease perpetuating a cycle of suffering without treatment.

People by nature, fear the unknown. The misconception of those suffering from mental illness

being more likely to cause hard to others could not be further from the truth. According to

Ahmedani and his article “Mental Health Stigma: Society, Individuals, and the Profession”

people living with a mental health condition is three times as likely to be victims of violence

(Ahmedani. 2011). Which means, statistically the same people who are feared by others to be

violent, are the victims themselves. Bringing awareness to mental health disorders and

normalizing the treatments of them are the only way to put this stigma to rest.

Conclusion

By advocating for mental health and making people more aware of this illness will result

in destigmatizing mental illness. Many people often ignore the symptoms or are just not aware of

the symptoms associated with a mental illness. One of the issues associated with mental health is

the stigma behind it, therefore people are ashamed or embarrassed to reach out for help. Once a

person is made aware of their symptoms, they can get proper treatment. There is also a lack of

access and resources for people living with a mental health condition. The more aware and

educated one becomes about people with mental illnesses, there will be more resources readily

available for everyone. By destigmatizing mental illness each individual suffering can get the

proper care needed to live a happier and healthier life.

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References

Ahmedani, B. K. (2011). Mental health stigma: society, individuals, and the profession. Journal

of social work values and ethics, 8(2), 4-1.

Centers For Disease Control And Prevention. (2021). Mental Health.

https://www.cdc.gov/mentalhealth/index.htm

DeBate, R. D., Gatto, A., & Rafal, G. (2018). The effects of stigma on determinants of mental

health help-seeking behaviors among male college students: an application of the

information-motivation-behavioral skills model. American journal of men's health, 12(5),

1286-1296.

Mental Health America. (2022). The State Of Mental Health In America.

https://www.mhanational.org/issues/state-mental-health-america

National Alliance On Mental Illness. (2021). Mental Health By the Numbers.

https://www.nami.org/mhstats

National Institute of Mental Health. (2019). Mental Illness. U.S. Department of Health and

Human Services, National Institutes of Health.

https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/mental-illness

Shi, L., Lu, Z. A., Que, J. Y., Huang, X. L., Liu, L., Ran, M. S., ... & Lu, L. (2020). Prevalence

of and risk factors associated with mental health symptoms among the general population

in China during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. JAMA network open, 3(7),

e2014053-e2014053.

Stuart H. (2016). Reducing the stigma of mental illness. Global mental health (Cambridge,

England), 3, e17. https://doi.org/10.1017/gmh.2016.11

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World Health Organization. (2021). WHO Mental Health Forum 2021 Report

https://cdn.who.int/media/docs/default-source/mental-health/who-mental-health-forum-

2021.pdf?sfvrsn=3af2f65f_7