Mental Illness

Figure 3: (source: news.eastvillagers.org)

Mental illness is a collective term which encompasses all mental disorders.  They can be characterized by one or more of the following; abnormal thinking, significant distress, significant impairment in daily functioning, and patterns of abnormal thinking.  After reading chapter 2 in my Sociology textbook, Understanding social problems, I wanted to know more about how social stigmas affect people with a mental illness.  I chose this particular topic because I believe that all people have the right to be treated fairly, and with dignity.  Many children and adults not only are faced with living out day to day tasks with their illness, but they also have to deal with negativity from society.  This chapter outlined social factors as well as lifestyles associated with having a mental illness.  

Figure 4:  (source: Mental Heath Awareness Week, NAMI)  

In the article From Sin to Science: Fighting the Stigmatization of Mental Illnesses, the author brings up how many people have gather information about mental illnesses.  The author states that "in our modem world, members of the general public most frequently make contact with mental illnesses through news or entertainment media where people with mental illnesses are depicted as unpredictable, violent, and dangerous" (Arboleda-Flórez).  In essence, what the author is stating is that often times the only information that people get in regards to a mental illness come from biased sources, and all too often the information is misrepresented.  It is hard to know how many Americans are living with a mental illness, in part because many are just too afraid to become labeled.  Although there is no swift course that can be taken that will correct such misrepresentations, through diligence and education it is possible to provide a safer environment for individuals with a mental illness.  

http://ida.lib.uidaho.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=78854969&site=ehost-live&scope=site

The link above will take you directly to the article "From Sin to Science: Fighting the Stigmatization of Mental Illnesses", where you can find out more about the social stigmas placed on individuals with a mental illness, as well as 6 steps to stigma reduction.

No further evidence is needed to show that 'mental illness' is not the name of a biological condition whose nature awaits to be elucidated, but is the name of a concept whose purpose is to obscure the obvious.
Thomas Szasz


http://www.nami.org/template.cfm?section=about_mental_illness
The above link will take you to the site "The National Alliance on Mental Illness".  It contains facts about mental illness, advocacy, discussion groups and more.

http://www.dbsalliance.org/site/PageServer?pagename=peer_landing&gclid=CJXaq-vvqbICFeeDQgodblAAMg

This link will take you to the site "Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance".  Information on where to find support either online or face to face can be found here.