My Perception of Mental Illness in Society

This is a paper I had to write for school. Figured I would post it on here since I haven't posted anything in a while, and I don't feel like writing anything new today.

My mother was diagnosed with a mental illness many years ago. When I told close friends that this was why she was different, they would then begin to refer to her as my “crazy” mom. In fact, even some of my newer friends do this, quite often, but I have never said anything because that has been my life. Since she refused treatment, the illness really did seem to define my daily life, but now I realize that it does not have to.

A new campaign caught my eye the other day. It is called “Bring Change 2 Mind” and uses celebrity sponsors, such as Glenn Close, to bring attention to the negative impact societal biases have on the mentally ill and their families. My only concern is that phrases like “you’re crazy” and “he/she is whacked in the head” will override the idea that mental illness does not define a person.

However, trying to change the public’s mind will not work unless the minds of government and the like are changed, too. Mental illness must be seen as just that: an illness. While government programs are getting better at recognizing that extra help is needed, they nowhere near give enough, and the public supports this idea because they do not want to waste their tax dollars on “crazy people” or “maniacs”.

So often when I discuss my interests in psychology and neuroscience, I am told that it is all just stupid or that most people are faking it for attention. While I take into consideration that the majority of people do not have an understanding of how the human brain functions, it still frustrates me. These stigmas will disappear only when people realize that you cannot just “get over” depression, take a pill to cure schizophrenia, or use prayer to cleanse the body of the “evil demons” that cause bipolar disorder.

Perhaps it is out of a fear that people ignore the evidence before them that mental illnesses are real. For if such illnesses exist, it is then possible for anyone to wake up one day and not have complete control of his or her own feelings, and then they would have to actually show so called “weakness” by seeking professional help for this problem from the very people they have spent years trying to disprove. I guess that would scare me, too.

The social stigmas surrounding mental illness have changed dramatically over the last few decades, but many stereotypes remain stronger than ever. I have witnessed these biases several times, including catching myself using negative or offensive words to describe mentally ill people in my own family. Granted I am more aware of these statements now that I am a psychology major, but that still does not excuse the past.