...Teen Depression Stigma It is proven that one in five teens experience depression. Depression is a condition where a person feels hopeless, not motivated, or not interested in life, lasting at least 2 weeks or longer. There is an urgency to be concerned for the reason that suicide is the third leading cause of death in teens and fifteen percent of teens have genuinely considered suicide. According to Amy Sutton 55% of the population without depression don’t consider it to be an actual disease. This stigma is making it close to impossible for teens to say they are experiencing depression. Some people say “it is just a phase”, “kids cannot get depression”, or “people with depression are crazy”. The contributing factors of rational thought,...
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...Juan Carlos Cruz English 1302 Research Paper 04/16/2015 Stigma among College students with depression and Anxiety There are a lot of illnesses. We go to the doctor, we get medication and some rest to get better; most of the times the disease is gone. However, mental illness is not the same. Once the person is affected, it is not a simple process to get back to an average day. It takes time and the right treatment to get better. .. Mental illness has several symptoms that need to meet in criteria of the DSM V in order to be diagnosed. The website MAYO CLINIC provides the following definition of what a mental illness is: “Mental illness refers to a wide range of mental health conditions — disorders that affect your mood, thinking and behavior. Examples of mental illness include depression, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, eating disorders and addictive behaviors. Many people have mental health concerns from time to time. But a mental health concern becomes a mental illness when ongoing signs and symptoms cause frequent stress and affect your ability to function. A mental illness can make you miserable and can cause problems in your daily life, such as at work or in relationships. In most cases, symptoms can be managed with a combination of medications and counseling (psychotherapy) (Mayo Clinic,2015)” As the website described, Mental illness must disturb the daily functioning, such as the ability to work, go to school, or the difficulty of doing simple activities...
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...World Health Organization described stigma as one of “the world’s remaining greatest obstacles to the treatment of mental illness” (Chronister, Chou, & Liao, 2013, p.2). Mental illness is defined as a serious mental, behavioral or emotional disorder that disables one’s ability to fully engage in life activities (Chronister, Chou, & Liao, 2013). In general, mental illness can range from sitting alone in a room for a while to eating less and to having severe depression/anxiety, suicidal thoughts, or schizophrenia (Kaplan, Aneshensel, Bierman, & Phelan, 2013). From a sociological standpoint, the study of mental illness deals with examining how societal notions frame the thoughts, feelings, and actions...
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...What is stigma? Three out of four people with a mental illness report that they have experienced stigma. Stigma is a mark of disgrace that sets a person apart. When a person is labelled by their illness they are seen as part of astereotyped group. Negative attitudes create prejudice which leads to negative actions and discrimination. Stigma brings experiences and feelings of: * shame * blame * hopelessness * distress * misrepresentation in the media * reluctance to seek and/or accept necessary help Families are also affected by stigma, leading to a lack of support. For mental health professionals, stigma means that they themselves are seen as abnormal, corrupt or evil, and psychiatric treatments are often viewed with suspicion and horror. A 2006 Australian study found that * nearly 1 in 4 of people felt depression was a sign of personal weakness and would not employ a person with depression * around a third would not vote for a politician with depression * 42% thought people with depression were unpredictable * one in 5 said that if they had depression they would not tell anyone * nearly 2 in 3 people surveyed thought people with schizophrenia were unpredictable and a quarter felt that they were dangerous Some groups are subjected to multiple types of stigma and discrimination at the same time, such as people with an intellectual disability or those from a cultural or ethnic minority. How can we challenge stigma? We all have a...
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...express feelings, has good self esteem and is confident, can manage stress and is able to make decisions. HIV disease is among the most devastating of illnesses, having multiple and profound effects upon all aspects of the bio-psychosocial and spiritual being. HIV as an illness affects the person first and foremost at the biological level in the form of an aggressive virus that compromises immunity. Every illness experience represents a unique and dramatic negative experience for the patient; it is associated with a profound and authentic psychological engagement of patients themselves and the significant people in their lives. According to a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill scientist, Psychosocial influences such as stress, depression and trauma have been neglected in biomedical and treatment studies involving people...
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...Societal Stigma 1 Running Head: Societal Stigma " " " " " " " High School students are less likely [than adults] to seek help for their mental illnesses due to societal stigma. " Guy Bukovsky" Ms. Fornazar" HSP3U" Dec 12, 2014" " " " " " " " Societal Stigma 2 " Through collecting 21 survey results and analyzing the answers given I was able to draw some conclusions. First off, people who have not been diagnosed with a mental illness are 11.6% more comfortable with talking to the guidance department about mental health; from this result, I can conclude that people who have been diagnosed with a mental illness are feeling shame or fear of stigmatization. In addition, those who have not been diagnosed with a mental illness are 11.67% more comfortable going to guidance in relation to a friend’s mental health. Those people who have been diagnosed with ADHD were generally more comfortable speaking with the guidance department. On the contrary, people who have been diagnosed with a depressive disorder were least likely to feel comfortable speaking with the guidance department. This further exemplifies the stigmatization of depression. The mean of all answers to the question “How comfortable do you feel when it comes to talking about your mental health issues with friends and peers?” is 3.18/5 which is significantly higher than the 2.31/5 and 2.59/5 regarding speaking to faculty and guidance, respectively. So while there is societal stigma, teens...
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...The Stigma Following Mentally Ill Individuals and How It Undermines Their Progress Mental illness is usually regarded as a curable disease, but what if people knew it can be a life sentence worsened by the beliefs of others? At the mere age of eleven, I was diagnosed with Major Depression; A debilitating mental illness, in my case brought on by childhood bullying and what I like to call, “bad genes.” After diagnosis, I assumed that my biggest struggle would be lack of motivation, but unfortunately it was the stigma. I soon became extremely sensitive to what others thought of me. Some individuals refused to be my friend just because I was mentally ill. Others seemed somewhat empathetic, yet ignored me anyways. Some things don’t change,...
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...disorders include: depression, schizophrenia, bipolar, and even seasonal affective disorder (SAD). The immediate stigma that is placed on most if not all mood disorders is that they are sicknesses. In the case of depression, this is not to confuse depression, a normal emotion with biological depression, an illness. Further along this line of irrational thought is the belief that they are not treatable and the person affected is in some way, shape or form disconnected from civilization as we know it. In this research paper, we will attempt to destroy these unfair stereotypes on this subject, attempt to rationalize the behaviors, and shed light on treatments for the various disorders. The research gathered will attempt to understand and answer these questions: 1. What are mood disorders and their symptoms? 2. What are the causes? 3. How can the stigma of mood disorders be removed? 4. What forms of treatment are the most successful? What Are Mood Disorders And Their Symptoms? In order to get a good idea of what causes mood disorders, we first must attempt to categorize what various classes of disorders there are. Our text, Psychology: A Journey (2008 p. 500), defined mood disorders as major disturbances in mood or emotion, such as depression or mania. The two major classes are: depressive and bipolar. Depressive disorders bring about extended bouts of depression, apathy, complete...
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...stigma and mental illness It appears that negative views of mental illness are common with in the public. According to Overton & Medina people suffering from mental illness are often portrayed as weird, defensive, and sometimes hard to talk to. According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary (1990), mental illness is defined as, “mentally distorted, mad, or crazy” (Russel, 1990). Generally, concepts about mental illness tend to be subjective, leading to difficulties in defining mental illness. Johnstone (2001) gives a broader definition of mental illness, believing that mental illness relates to the individuals spectrum of cognitions, emotions, and behaviours that damper relationships required for work, home, and in the learning facilities (Johnstone, 2001). This definition is also referenced in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders which categorizes the symptoms that are used to diagnose mental illness. 8 out of 10 people in Australia who experiences mental disorder will more like will experience stigma, stigma is a the behaviour of people toward people with mental disorders, stigma has been seen on many people, Stigma refers to negative, unfavorable attitudes and the behavior they produce. There are many people who experience mental disorders and when they newly get depression they don't go and ask for professional treatment because they don't want to be labeled and they don't want people calling them names, that is why a lot of people who get depression...
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...suffer from mood or anxiety disorders, as well as having more problems with substance abuse and experience symptoms of depression which have resulted from prejudicial behaviour. This gives greater reason to believe that minority and gay-related stress plays a crucial role in the likelihood of the individual developing depression-related behaviour as well as other disorders. It has been discovered that these stressors not only have psychological effects, but they also have physical effects to the individual. Williamson (2000) found that stressors related to being gay or lesbian may also have an effect on physical well-being and that internalized homophobia plays a crucial role as a precipitating factor in several aspects of illness and may affect progression...
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...the stigmatization of depression and how postpartum depression can be found in women around the world. Women’s health has come a long way in the United States, no one is denying that. However...
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...I am a firm believer that social stigma does exist against individuals who seek treatment for mental health concerns. This topic really hits home for two reasons. One, I have A.D.D., and two, I suffer from depression. It took me a while to say these things out loud. I cried when I was diagnosed because I did not want to rely on medication for me to function normally. I also didn't want people to look at me different. Even though I have accepted it, I still get people who think it is all in my head. They really think it is something that I can fix if I concentrate harder, or think happier thoughts. I have had a close friend tell me that depression is not even a real thing. Social stigma is out there. As stated in the artical, "No shame, no blame:...
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...believe mental illness should not be considered a real disease. However, that is not the reality of the situation, because mental illness most definitely should be considered a real disease. Mental illnesses should be considered real diseases because of the effects it has on its victims, and by definition of what a disease is, along with it being very common around the world. Mental Illnesses effect on a person's well-being can be as small and drastic as any other disease out there. If anything, their (Mental Illness's) effects transition from small to drastic, is way faster than the majority of other diseases. This type of rapid transition is unfortunately found in one of the most mental disorder in our society, Depression (Major Depressive Disorder). Depressions effect merely starts...
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...Stigma of Mental Illness Mental illness seems more prevalent today than it did in the days of our grandparents and great grandparents. Arguments range many opinions of why this is the case. One argument is that more mental illnesses are recognized today compared to the past. For example, during WWII “Shell Shock” was used to describe the abnormal mental condition affecting all soldiers who experienced traumatic events during war. Psychiatrist didn’t discover Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), until the Vietnam War (Joseph, 2011). Advancements and discovery’s in the field of Psychology today have led to the diagnosis of many mental illnesses such as schizophrenia, borderline personality disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), bipolar disorder, depression, and others. This led to many questions. Are these conditions over diagnosed? Are these just labels for behaviors not acceptable by society? What stigmas are associated with those affected by these conditions? I think it’s a combination of all of the above. (NAMI, 2016)...
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...Please discuss your top organization choice, and why this organization's issue area is important to you. (200-400) My top organization choice is the Kerrville State Hospital because I want to volunteer in a hospital setting to improve my patient-care relations. The stigma about mental health in society is one that is perpetuated by those who don’t truly comprehend the true severity of mental illnesses. This stigma is the result of people not fully understanding mental illnesses due to it not being discussed. If I was able to be apart of this organization during winter break, I could help break the stigma about mental illness by recounting my own first-hand experiences with patients. Mental illness is something that, in my opinion, isn’t discussed enough. Mental illness is...
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