This week I have decided to write about a topic that is very near and dear to my heart. For those of you who do not know me, I am a graduate student at Lindsey Wilson College and I am pursuing a Master of Education in Counseling & Human Development. I graduated in December of 2013 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Human Services. I am currently working as a practicum student at Benchmark Family Services. I’m sure by now you have concluded that this subject is something I am very passionate about and you would be correct. With that being said, I feel that I have a responsibility as a professional in this field to be an advocate for the mental health community. One of my most important duties is to educate our society about mental illness and correct any misconceptions that people may have. Today, I just want to spend some time reflecting on how the views of mental health have changed and how they have stayed the same. I also want to discuss the social stigma that still exists and how we as a society can work together to eliminate this factor for good.
For many years, people have treated mental illness like a contagious disease. Some people worry that if they get to close they will start acting the same way as “those people.” Some people are just intimidated by those with mental illness because they are different. This is a normal human reaction because we fear what we can’t understand. Our society needs to realize that people with mental illness are just “normal” human beings who in some cases have experienced certain traumas in their lives in which their condition was the end result of living through that trauma. In other cases, these individuals have brains that are designed to experience life and the world differently than other people. The majority of the time these cases involve circumstances that were beyond the individual’s control and they should not be discriminated because they don’t meet the standards of the society that we live in. In regards to mental health treatment, some people believe that seeking therapeutic services is a sign of weakness. This assumption really gets under my skin because I firmly believe that people who choose to come to counseling are incredibly strong and brave. They realize they have a problem and they are seeking help because they can’t live this way anymore. They have enough insight to know that if they don’t take action nothing is ever going to get better. Some people have grown up in families where they have been taught that what happens at home stays at home and that their personal business should never be disclosed to outsiders. This mentality is very dangerous to have depending on the living situation and circumstances of the family. I also believe that it can have very detrimental consequences for all of the individuals involved. Okay, I’m getting off my soap box now.
On a more positive note, I believe that we have come a really long way in regards to being more supportive and accepting towards individuals in the mental health community. More people are coming forward and opening up about their conditions and experiences now more than ever before in history. Several celebs have started to come clean in the about their own mental health issues. Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia, Star Wars)-Bipolar disorder and substance abuse; Drew Carrey-Depression; Paula Deen-Agoraphobia (“A type of anxiety disorder in which you fear and often avoid places or situations that might cause you to panic, and make you feel trapped, helpless or embarrassed.-Mayo Clinic”); Amanda Bynes-Schizophrenia and Bipolar disorder; Drew Barrymore-panic attacks and substance abuse addiction, Demi Lovato-Bulimia, Bipolar disorder, and substance abuse addiction; Hayden Panetierre-Postpartum Depression and Body Dysmorphic disorder(“Mental disorder in which you can’t stop thinking about one or more perceived defects or flaws in your appearance, a flaw that, to others, is either minor or not observable.-Mayo Clinic)” and Adam Levine-Attention Deficit Hyperactivity disorder. These are only a few cases of celebrities who have been diagnosed with some type of disorder. Some of them are currently working with campaigns to raise awareness about mental health and erase the stigma. There are also several movies that have been made over the years to give individuals more insight into these disorders and conditions. These movies include A Beautiful Mind, Shutter Island, Girl Interrupted, One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest, The Soloist, The Silver Linings Playbook, The Silence of the Lambs, Sybill, What About Bob?, and Rain Man. Most of these movies are based on books so definitely check those out as well.
I hope reading this article has convinced you to consider your own personal views about mental health and that you will take some time to learn what you can about this subject. I hope I did not offend anyone in writing this article that was not my intention. The purpose of writing about this article was only to give a personal and professional perspective of someone on the inside so to speak. Thank you for reading and please share this article with your family and friends.
