"The Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog" (1818) by Caspar David Friedrich
According to Lerner and Schlecter, “over 30 percent of college students sought out services at the counseling center. More students are seeking are than ever before, possibly because of anti-stigma campaigns” (171).
Describe any examples you have come across that contribute to or that demonstrate the stigma associated with mental health challenges, whether in your community or in popular culture. Do you have a theory about why such stigma exists and how it can be diminished?
Describe any examples you have come across that contribute to or that demonstrate the stigma associated with mental health challenges, whether in your community or in popular culture. Do you have a theory about why such stigma exists and how it can be diminished?
In pop culture we see many examples of seeking mental help to be considered a weakness, so, often men in these examples will brush the idea off because they think it will affect their masculinity. I think this stigma exists because for centuries we have been taught to not bother others with our problems. There is already work being done to diminish this problem, with many positive examples in pop culture showing up recently.
ReplyDeleteAs someone who is constantly working on my mental health, I think it is the stereotyping that happens with mental illness that drives people away. If someone said they had depression or anxiety, some peoples first reaction would be to put them into a social box because of how media portrays certain illnesses. People expect certain mental illnesses to have a certain look, while in reality, mental health has no certain physical traits or appearances. A depressed person can always appear to be happy on the outside and have their life together. A person with anxiety could appear calm and collected to others. One thing I believe has helped with mental health stereotyping is celebrities being honest about their struggles. This helps people who have mental health problems see that even the people who have everything can struggle with illness.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree more Hailey! Ive personally been working on my mental health since the age of 16. It hasn't been easy what so ever. Sometimes it feels like I finally have a grip on it, and then that's usually when I end up breaking down. Seeing people who have such a big platform be vocal and open about they mental health has definitely helped me, especially with being a male. (stereotypes, yeah?) I tell myself all the time, "It's okay to not be okay" and that's okay!!
ReplyDeleteI think a big stigma is that some people are just faking it, or that it's not as big of a deal as it really is. People like to seclude themselves and brush important stuff off such as their mental health. By doing this, it takes a strain on their lives and makes it much harder. What they need is encouraging friends and family who are willing to help them and show them love when they need it.
ReplyDeleteA big stigma that I've seen around mental health is that men shouldn't, or aren't supposed to have mental health problems. I have several friends who live with older parents or even grandparents that don't help them get the help they need and tell them to just "suck it up". That's why I am a big advocate for taking care of your mind, because I've seen what depression, anxiety, and other things have done to some truly amazing people, who on the outside are fun, bubbly people, but on the inside are struggling. That's also a reason why I try to be as friendly as possible to every person I meet and hang out with, because you never know what they might be thinking, and you never know what comment you might mean as a joke, might actually hurt them. I'm glad that more people, especially celebrities with big platforms are talking more about mental health awareness for everyone, and I hope that we get to a place where we can all take care of our mental health together, as a society.
ReplyDelete^Aldan Gallaway
DeleteThroughout high school, I saw various people gawk or talk negatively about the students with disabilities. While immaturity is a significant portion of what causes this, I do not think it is all: there is a stigma in American society against anyone who is not deemed "normal" or excellent. Because of the communities and popular media that either disregard or criticize anyone with a disability or mental health issue, many people are hesitant to seek help, which only worsens negative stigmas.
ReplyDeleteI believe that these stigmas have been slowly diminished through progressive views on the challenges of mental health. Campaigns specifically targeting mental health have been successful while other campaigns focusing - such as being happy with your body and embracing who are you - have indirectly contributed towards diminishing mental health stigmas through promoting the notion of "normal" being a spectrum, not an absolute.
✎ Luken Sloan
I think so much stigma comes from not wanting to appear as weak or crazy. Of course, seeking out mental health services does not mean you are any of the things listed above but social conditioning can lead to people feeling way. I think language plays a large role in this as almost all words tied to mental illness or mental health issues are used with negative connotations. Examples of this can be casual use of things such as ‘psycho’ or ‘mental patient’, which can subconsciously make people want to separate themselves from being perceived this way by avoiding mental health services even if they really need it.
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