Speaking Out!

Sep 15

Bravo to Simone Biles! Bravo to Venus Williams! Bravo to all athletes and celebrities who are candidly talking about their struggles with mental illness! They are opening the doors and leading the way for all individuals and families who are coping with mental illness to feel free to do the same. We need these leaders because even now stigma exists and many are afraid to talk about their anxieties, their overwhelming insecurities, their unwanted voices, or their traumas.

Social stigma surrounding any illness has been complicated. In my great grandparent's day the word “tuberculosis” was whispered. When my great uncle was diagnosed, the family went to great lengths to not mention his hospitalizations. During my grandparent's generation. “cancer” was the taboo illness. My grandmother and my father both talked about their cancer in hushed tones. Both of these diseases became more socially acceptable to talk about once good treatments became more widely available. Fear begins to subside when there was hope for treatment.

But is the same true of mental illness? Certainly treatment for mental illness has grown exponentially in the last 50 years. At one time, individuals with severe depression or psychotic illnesses spent most of their lives in institutions or mental hospitals because treatments were non-existent or ineffective. Between 1900 and 1950, prior to the discovery of psychotropic medication, medical interventions for psychotic symptoms relied on fever- inducing therapies that sometimes involved injecting oils or sulfur to create a fever. Other “remedies” for mental illness focused on controlling behaviors such as sleep therapies, gas therapies, electro-shock therapy, and lobotomies. Few people recovered. The advent of new medications in the 1950's created possibilities for effective treatment for those experiencing symptoms of anxiety, depression, and psychotic illnesses. Since that time research has produced much more effective medications and psychological interventions that relieve symptoms or in many cases now contribute to recovery. With the hope of a more functional life, those with mental illness no longer have to be hidden away in hospitals.

While hope born of effective treatment seemed to change the shame and secrecy associated with other illnesses, the stigma associated with mental illness has been slower to recover. Many people still think that if you have depression or anxiety that you should be able to “snap out of it”. And even worse, many people think that individuals with a diagnosis such as schizophrenia are dangerous even though studies have shown most violence is not motivated by schizophrenia or mental illness in general. Swanson and others have found that if all mental illness was cured today, only 4% of violent crime would decrease.

We need to find ways to reduce fears and misunderstandings about mental illness. One of the best ways is for more people to come forward and talk about their experiences. Bias or prejudice can be reduced by exposure to and interactions with others who may be thought to be “different”. Seeing people with mental illness as human beings who happen to be coping with an illness is an important social shift that will encourage acceptance and support for those who need it the most and make seeking treatment less difficult. For accurate and up-to-date information about mental illness check out useful websites such as the National Alliance on Mental Illness, the National Institute of Mental Health, and the Violence Project.

Speaking Out!

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