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Mental illness can strike anyone! It knows no age limits,
economic status, race, creed or color. During the course of a year,
more than 48 million Americans are affected by one or more mental
disorders.
Medical science has made incredible progress over the last
century in understanding, curing and eliminating the causes of many
diseases including mental illnesses. However, while doctors
continue to solve some of the mysteries of the brain, many of its
functions remain a puzzle. Even at the leading research centers, no
one fully understands how the brain works or why it malfunctions.
However. researchers have determined that many mental illnesses are
probably the result of chemical imbalances in the brain. These
imbalances may be inherited, or may develop because of excessive
stress or substance abuse.
It is sometimes easy to forget that our brain, like all of our
other organs, is vulnerable to disease. Unfortunately, because
people with mental illnesses often suffer from symptoms which are
behavioral, they are sometimes thought of differently than people
with physical ailments. Instead of receiving compassion and
support, people with mental illnesses may be greeted by
unsympathetic, unfair or hostile responses.
Why Stigma Still Exists
Unfortunately, the media are responsible for many of the
attitudes and misconceptions we hold regarding people with mental
illnesses. As a society we are bombarded with images of people with
mental illnesses as being homicidal madmen, women with 16
personalities, or homeless people talking to themselves.
Newspapers, in particular, often stress a history of mental
illness in the backgrounds of people who commit crimes of violence.
Television news programs frequently sensationalize crimes where
persons with mental illness are involved. Comedians make fun of
people with mental illnesses, using their disabilities as a source
of humor. Furthermore, national advertisers present stigmatizing
images as promotional gimmicks to sell products.
Ironically, the media also offer the best hope for eradicating
stigma because of their power to educate and influence public
opinion. Objectively, the media have a responsibility to provide a
broader perspective on people with mental illnesses.
Most of the intolerance can be attributed to the stigma that
accompanies mental illness. As a society, we often perceive people
who have a mental illness as strange, scary, even dangerous. These
misconceptions frequently result in blatant discrimination. In
fact, when people with mental illnesses are asked to identify the
biggest problem they face, most say it is simply lack of
acceptance.
People who suffer or have suffered from mental illness have many
obstacles to overcome. Don't at let your attitude or actions be yet
another hurdle!
Did You Know?
Abraham Lincoln fought depression for many years. After
overcoming his illness, he went on to become President of the
United States! Others who have conquered their mental illness are
Dick Clark, entertainer, Ted Turner, cable TV mogul, Alma Powell,
wife of Colin Powell, Mike Wallace of 60 Minutes, Joan Rivers,
comedienne, Art Buchwald, humorist-columnist, Dick Cavett, TV talk
show host, Kitty Dukakis, wife of Michael Dukakis, Patty Duke,
actress.
The best way to dispel misconceptions and eliminate
discrimination about mental illness is to get a clear understanding
of how it affects people.
What is Mental
Illness?
A mental illness is a disease that causes mild to severe
disturbances in thinking, perception and behavior which may
significantly impair the person's ability to cope with life's
ordinary demands and routines. Many mental illnesses are believed
to have biological causes, just like cancer, diabetes and heart
disease. Depending on the type and severity of the mental illness,
with the proper care and treatment, a person can learn to cope,
improve, or experience a full recovery.
The Five Major Categories of
Mental Illness:
Anxiety Disorders
Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illnesses. The
three main types are: phobias, panic disorders, and
obsessive-compulsive disorders. People who suffer from phobias
experience extreme fear or dread from a particular object or
situation. Panic disorders involve sudden, intense feelings of
terror for no apparent reason and symptoms similar to a heart
attack. People with obsessive-compulsive disorder try to cope with
anxiety by repeating words or phrases or engaging in repetitive,
ritualistic behavior such as constant hand washing.
Mood Disorders
Mood disorders include depression and bipolar disorder which
involves extreme mood swings such as extreme sadness or elation,
sleep and eating disturbances, and changes in activity and energv
levels. Suicide may be a risk with these disorders.
Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is the most disabling and serious of the mental
illnesses. Schizophrenia is believed to be caused by chemical
imbalances in the brain that cause a variety of symptoms including
hallucinations, delusions, withdrawal, incoherent speech and
impaired reasoning.
Dementias
This group of brain disorders includes diseases like Alzheimer's
which leads to loss of mental functions, including memory loss and
a decline of intellectual and physical skills.
Eating Disorders
Anorexia nervosa and bulimia are serious, life-threatening
illnesses. Anorexia is self-starvation while bulimia is cycles of
bingeing (consuming large quantities of food) and purging
(self-inducing vomiting or abusing laxatives). Behavior may also
include excessive exercise. People with anorexia and bulimia have a
preoccupation with food and an irrational fear of being fat.
Common Misconceptions About Mental
Illness
MYTH:"Mental illnesses are not real diseases like heart disease
and cancer."
FACT: While many psychiatric disorders can not be detected
through simple blood tests or biopsies, these diseases have been
linked in studies to a biological origin. Some psychotic disorders
may be situational and temporary, caused by extreme stress or life
changes such as a death of a loved one or a divorce.
MYTH: "People who need psychiatric care should be locked away in
institutions. "
FACT:The notion that all people with mental illnesses should be
institutionalized is a thing of the past. Today, there are a
variety of care providers, programs and medications that allow most
patients to lead productive lives within their communities.
MYTH:"A person who has had a mental illness can never be normal.
"
FACT:Mental illness is often a temporary condition. A previously
well-adjusted individual may have an episode of illness lasting
weeks or months, and then may go for years, even a lifetime,
without further difficulty. To label such a recovered patient
"abnormal" is both unfair and unrealistic.
MYTH:"Mentally ill persons are dangerous. "
FACT:The vast majority of people with mental illnesses are not
violent. In the cases when violence does occur, the incidence
typically results from the same reasons as with the general public
such as feeling threatened or excessive use of alcohol and/or
drugs.
MYTH:"Recovered mental patients can work low-level jobs but aren
't suitedfor reallv important or responsible positions. "
FACT:Like everyone else, people with mental illnesses are
individuals. Career potential depends on a person's particular
talents, abilities, intelligence, experience and motivation as well
as his/her current state of physical and mental health.
HOW YOU CAN HELP:
- Be positive and helpful. Respond to people who have a mental
illness as individuals. Learn about the person and deal with them
on the basis of your knowledge, not your assumptions.
- Do what you can to help people with a mental illness reenter
society. Support their efforts to obtain housing and jobs.
- Don't let false statements about mental illness or people with
mental illnesses go unchallenged. Many people have wrong and
damaging ideas on the subject, but honestly believe that their
views are accurate. Correct information may help them change both
their ideas and actions.
- Spread the word. Tell others what you have learned. Help give
people recovering from a mental illness what they need most, a
chance.
How You Can Combat
stigma:
- Share your experience with mental illness. Your story can
convey to others that having a mental illness is nothing to be
embarrassed about.
- Help people with mental illness reenter society. Support their
efforts to obtain housing and jobs.
- Respond to false statements about mental illness or people with
mental illnesses. Many people have wrong and damaging ideas on the
subject. Accurate facts and information may help change both their
ideas and actions.
For More Information
Call Ten Broeck Hospital at 502-426-6380 or 1-800-866-8876
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