Tag: stigma

Why Words Matter – Even If It’s Not You

 

As some of you may have seen in the news or on my Facebook page, we had quite the day this past Friday. Governor Wolf was in town, holding the first of what will be many mental health roundtables. He announced the kick-off of Reach Out PA: Your Mental Health Matters on Thursday. It’s an overall, comprehensive effort to reform and improve Pennsylvania’s mental health system. It’s fantastic and desperately needed.

At the Governor’s Press Conference on Thursday, the Governor said:

“For those struggling with their mental health, we have one message: your mental health matters and it’s okay to reach out for help. We are stepping up our efforts to ensure every Pennsylvanian can access mental health care and more agencies can respond to the challenges facing Pennsylvanians struggling with their mental health. The act of reaching out for help – or to help – can make a huge difference for someone struggling.”

I opened the roundtable with this:

Obviously, I’ve discussed my depression and anxiety before. I haven’t quite gotten that intimate with how close I came to a suicide attempt, so that was a bit new.

I actually wasn’t even planning on doing that until a few hours before the event, when it hit me: I was going back to the place where I had seriously considered ending my life, standing with the Governor, my Congresswoman, friends, colleagues, and advocates, with the goal of saving lives.

(Random side note: I actually tagged my ex-girlfriend on Facebook for saving my life. We’re certainly on good terms, but I can’t imagine how weird that must have been – she looks at her phone and goes, “Wait, who tagged me? Why did that happen?)

I have to say – on a personal level – how much it meant to share that story. At the table with me was the Governor, my Congresswoman (Susan Wild, who has become a dear, dear friend) and Dr. Rachel Levine (PA Secretary of Health). Dr. Levine is brilliant and one of my favorite cabinet members with the Governor. She’s also a pioneer, serving as one of the highest-ranking transgender government officials in the United States. I cannot imagine how many kids and adults look at her and draw hope from her success and competence.

Congresswoman Wild is an advocate for mental health in and of her own right after she lost her life partner, Kerry Acker, to suicide. And Tom Wolf is truly one of the most recent people I’ve ever met in this job.

To be able to share that story – with those fine people, and everyone else in the room – that was meaningful. It gave meaning to what I had endured.

So, away from myself now. What the Governor has said about mental health, what others in his cabinet have said…it matters deeply. It matters because the Governor is lending his personal credibility and institutional strength to a push for better mental health access.

Public policy, public statements, and stigma are all interwoven. By doing events like this, there are people out there who are recognizing what the Governor is doing. At least some people will be touched by his words, by all of our words. And hopefully, they will be more likely to get the help they need and deserve.

Look, this system needs investment. Massive investment. We need more workers, more funding and less stigma. That all ties together. I hope and pray this was the start of a more comprehensive effort.

But I know that hearing someone as important, well known and well-liked as the Governor say that it is okay to ask for help – that matters. And it should matter if you say it, too.

Why We Need More Articles That Get Specific to YOU on Mental Illness

I’ve been relieved to see that more and more people are discussing mental illness lately. When done right, this is a good thing – people become more aware of the breadth and depth of the mental health crisis we have, and hopefully more likely to seek help themselves or encourage their loved ones to do the same.

As long as the topic is approached with sensitivity and empathy, there is no such thing as a “bad” mental health article. Some articles, however, can have more of an impact than others.

Which ones are those? The ones which focus on you or your loved ones.

Consider, for a moment, these articles which focus on specific professionals:

Or these articles, which concentrate on age groups:

Or these racially or location-focused articles:

If you reviewed all of these headlines and identified with any of them, you felt a moment of empathy. You probably felt a touch of happiness at being mentioned in a story like this. If you fell into any of the groups noted above, I bet you were a little more likely to click on the article and read more, and from there, maybe you found a useful piece of information. Maybe you found something that made you think of someone you loved. Maybe you filed a scrap of information away for later.

Either way, stigma and mental health campaigns work best when they are targeted at the person with someone that they recognize. Often times, in the work of mental health planning, you will hear conversations about the need for culturally competent campaigns – meaning campaigns where it’s people of varying ethnic and racial backgrounds.

I’ll take that one step further by point to the above. There’s no question that cultural competence in every area – including mental health conversations – is very important. However, it’s not the only one. We also need to have these conversations where the reader can look at someone and recognize them because of their job, their age group, their location, and that’s why these stories are so important.

Generalities aren’t enough. The more specific we can get – the more targeted we can be in our efforts to discus mental illness and stigma and suicide – the better our campaigns can be.

The American Public Gets It: Stigma Is Real, and We Need To Do More

CBS News ran this fascinating poll on mental illness. I’d argue that there aren’t many surprises in the poll, but I got two key takeaways.

First, to summarize the findings:

  • 51% of Americans say that people living with a mental illness face “a lot” of stigma and discrimination – 31% say “some.”
  • 38% of people say that mental illness stigma has gotten better, 22% say worse, and the rest say that it hasn’t changed.
  • 66% of people say that mental illness is a very serious public health problem – 28% say somewhat serious.
  • People do believe that mental illness is a real medical condition (79%). Roughly 2/3 of those polled also said that virtually anyone can get a mental illness and most people who are treated right can lead productive lives.
  • A mere 12% of people say that services for the mentally ill are adequate – but 49% said they are not.
  • A whopping 77% of people say that celebrities speaking about mental illness are doing a good thing – only 18% said no.
  • 73% of Americans know someone diagnosed with a mental health disorder (I guarantee that number is higher and people just hid their own mental illnesses), while 58% said that they had a family member who sought care for mental health (again, I’m sure that number is higher).

So, here’s what I got out of this. First, those support numbers are just overwhelming. 66% of people think mental illness is a “very serious” public health problem. 28% say it is at least “somewhat serious.” That’s 95% of the American public who think that mental illness is at least somewhat serious. That is not a small number! The key question is this: What does that translate to? Are people willing to dedicate more time and money to mental health care? Or is this simply a, “Gee, that sucks…moving right along” sort of things?

At the bare minimum, it is good to know that people understand just what a major problem mental illness is.

Second, the stigma questions got me thinking: What if the stigma is all self imposed? I mean, take a look again at that top finding. 51% of people think individuals with mental illness face “a lot” of stigma, while 35% say they face “some” stigma. That is not a small number. But if that many people think stigma is so real, what’s really the problem here? People who acknowledge stigma is real must also have stigma-inducing thoughts, right? Or, what if the stigma is just the fear of being stigmatized? Or self-stigma? I’ve always thought that self-stigma is a bigger problem then actual stigma.

The findings, in my mind, mean that we have to rethink our traditional definition of mental health stigma, because I don’t think that a traditional understanding of, “People with mental illness sure do face a lot of stigma” is enough.

But, as always, I ask: What do you think? What are your thoughts on this poll? Let us know in the comments!

The Hope and Sadness: Out Of The Darkness Walk

With one exception, I’ve had the honor of speaking at every Out Of The Darkness walk which has occurred in the Lehigh Valley in the time I’ve been a State Representative. Since I began publicly discussing my struggles with depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation, my role has expanded, and I’ve MCed the event for the past few years. I came back from this year’s event a few minutes ago, and I wanted to discuss it.

First and foremost: Man. It’s really, really tough. People walk around with shirts and team shirts and mottos and anti-suicide tattoos and teams of people and you just feel their pain. There are sweet dogs everywhere.

I always have a tough time – particularly during the Honor Bead ceremony, where you introduce family members and attempt survivors – and that just breaks you. You read these stories out loud of people with life and love and potential, and they are gone. This year, I had the honor of reading the Honor Bead ceremony with Congresswoman Susan Wild, someone I’m proud to call a friend. As many of you likely read, Congresswoman Wild lost her long-term partner, Kerry, to suicide, and has lead a very public fight for suicide prevention and mental illness. I cannot imagine how hard it was for her.

And I’m not gonna lie, I feel terrible feeling emotional. I’ve struggled with depression, and I have been suicidal, but I’ve never attempted suicide. I’ve lost people I’ve known, but never a dear friend or someone I love. And you walk around this event – people come with shirts and signs of their loved ones – and you can’t even imagine their pain.

Please understand, I am not looking for comfort here. I get why it’s hard. I just don’t think my pain compares to those who walk for someone they love. And I don’t expect it to, either.

The one story I don’t think I’ll ever forget was this:

That…yeah. It was hard.

Here’s the dichotomy of the event though, and I suppose it’s more a reflection on the dichotomy of the human experience. It was still, for all the sadness and grief, a beautiful event.

First of all, they raised over $115,000. YAY!!! Oh, you can go here to donate. And you should.

Second of all. It’s not all sadness. It was stories of hope. People who survived and turned their life around. An army vet who survived addiction and multiple attempts to stand on that stage in honor of the 22 veterans who die by suicide every single day. People who walk to remember, and who find each other. I kept watching people talk to Congresswoman Wild and say thank you. But there was a real feeling of community there.

As I said in my brief remarks, everyone who attended and walked was brave. We all know what a prominent issue suicide is: 47,000 died in 2017, and more than 1.4 million attempts. And yet, still. Silence and stigma. Every step that was taken, every dollar raised – that’s a little crack in the darkness. I’ll take that.

So, despite the sadness and pain of an event like this, you have to find hope. It can be a struggle. It can be emotionally and physically draining. But it was such a beautiful event to participate in. People found hope, found each other. And found an awful lot of puppies. Seriously, that really helped. The puppies.

I won’t lie and say I’m fine – it was a hard event to run. Speaking personally, there’s a sense of burden there. You want to do the best job you can, and you want to let people know that those of us in power are listening. And that we share their pain and want to help alleviate it.

As always, thanks for reading. Please leave any thoughts below!

Stigma, Shame & First Responders

My mental health and legislative worlds frequently come together, but an article and what happened yesterday really made me blink.

First, the good news. At a hearing yesterday, the Pennsylvania House Veterans Affairs & Emergency Preparedness committee moved a bill of mine. HB1459 would give first responders more mental health resources. It would require trauma and mental health training, create a peer to peer mentorship program and mandate the creation of a toll-free hotline for first responders who are struggling with mental health issues.

I feel like legislation like this is more important then ever. Why? Stories like this, which report on the NYPD’s ongoing mental health and suicide crisis, and the unwillingness of some police officers to seek mental health help, despite the fact that they feel the need to do so:

In a new report, the Department of Investigation’s Office of the Inspector General surveyed officers who retired in 2016 and found that 25 percent of them reported going through a period of emotional stress, trauma or substance abuse that caused them to consider getting professional help.

But more than a third of those officers did not end up seeking assistance, according to the report.

Half of them expressed fear that the department would find out about their decision to seek support.

So, what do we do here?

First, there are internal things that I think the NYPD can do. Chief among them? Work to change the culture and attack stigma by sharing stories of successful police officers who have experienced mental illness, sought help, and thrived.

Furthermore, the NYPD must do whatever it can to stress the confidential nature of their programs. According to the report, 50% of people surveyed were worried about the department finding out about their illnesses, 45% of negative labels, and 39% afraid of being put on a modified assignment. As the NYPD notes, an “extremely small number” of officers do wind up having their weapons taken away, but they are given those back upon successful treatment. Treatment is confidential, except in cases where the officer in question may present a danger to themselves or others.

The second is broader: We need cultural change at a society wide level. When we discuss the importance of stigma when it comes to mental health, this is why. Stigma is more than just how people look at the mental ill, its how we look at mental illness within ourselves. Clearly, as cases like this demonstrate, a culture of machismo and an overabundance of self-reliance can kill. For reasons like this, we clearly must do a better job of reminding people that there is no shame in seeking help, and that in many cases, its the only way to lead a happy, healthy and productive life.

More Than Stigma: Shifting the Nature of the Conversation Around Mental Health and Suicide

Advocates for suicide prevention and mental health often talk broadly about “the stigma” which surrounds mental illness and suicide. Many of us – myself included – believe that if we can just get more people talking and thinking of mental illness, if we can have people discussing their issues with depression, anxiety, addiction and more without shame or fear, we can help to put an end to this epidemic. I firmly believe that this is the case.

I also know its not enough.

And that’s where the conversation around public policy, resources and taxation has to come into pay.

I happened to catch a fascinating column on mental health the other day – I obviously can’t find it now, that would be too easy, but the column made a great broad point: Ending mental health stigma is like cutting holes in a wall, but then there’s nowhere to go because our system of mental healthcare is so broken in this country.

Many of us concentrate our efforts on stigma for a couple of reasons. I think it’s one of the most important things that we can do. But let me expand on the second part of that sentence: That we can do. People do need to know it is okay to seek help and to treat themselves. They need to know that these issues are real, powerful and can kill you. But, as any studies have shown, individual conversations are the best way to break mental health stigma. A face to face talk can make a huge difference in that area. That means that, without question, the most important person to ending mental health stigma is you.

Second, it’s the easiest.

Making society-wide change is really hard, of course. Particularly in areas where colossal interest groups are at play. I’m an elected official – theoretically one of the people who makes state-wide decisions in Pennsylvania – and I fully understand just how difficult this can be.

And the simple truth is that we must make systemic changes to help reduce rates of mental illness and suicide.

From a mental health and suicide perspective, there’s an awful lot that needs to be done. This includes increasing access to mental health care, increasing the number of mental health care practitioners and addressing the mental health care practitioner shortage, reducing costs, enforcing parity in insurance care, reducing access to deadly means of suicide and more. And that’s to say nothing about the major societal problems that we face which contribute to mental illness and suicide, including improving housing options, strengthening the social safety net, increasing the minimum wage, making housing more affordable, etc.

Many of us tackle stigma because we can’t get at these issues. And stigma is something we can control.

So, what does that mean? Should you stop talking about mental health stigma? Hell no. Of course it’s vitally important, but it’s important in more ways than you think, because the more you discuss mental health, the more pressure you can bring on policy makers to address the fundamental inequities and gaps in our system which allow for mental illness to run so rampant. Keep fighting.

But make sure you fight in a public policy realm, in addition to addressing individual changes. Tell policy makers and elected officials that you expect them to do more to address rates of mental illness and reduce suicides. These issues require government intervention, and that requires public pressure. Please help make this happen.

 

Medication is Not Addiction: A response to a misinformed column

I spent way too much time on Sunday on Twitter, joining a chorus of voices who were yelling at David Lazarus, a columnist or the Los Angeles times. Lazarus wrote a column in which he discusses his own experience at trying to withdraw from anti-depressants. The title of the column? “Hi, I’m David. I’m a drug addict.”

Yep. Only went downhill from there.

Ironically, Lazarus discussed important issues like the over prescribing of medication, failure to adequately warn patients about side effects and discontinuation syndrome. These are real, important issues. They merit serious, thoughtful consideration. Instead, Lazarus decided to call millions of Americans (like me) drug addicts. He esoterically wondered “Who am I, really?” about taking anti-depressants. It’s a tragic, misguided view, one which reinforces stigma and will prevent people from getting help they need. And the language used by Lazarus is just appalling. If I’m a drug addict, so is everyone else who uses medication to survive for any other condition.

Really, this is just an ugly article.

I wrote a response which the Los Angeles Times did not accept, citing their policy to not run op-eds in response to other op-eds. Fair enough. My response, then, is below.

Don’t believe crap like what Lazarus decided to spew. Medication can be a vitally important part of any therapeutic regimen. It has saved thousands of lives.

—

Let’s say you are a diabetic and require insulin to live. One day, a friend tells you to quit insulin. Stunned, you ask why. Your friend responds: “Well, you can’t live without insulin. That makes you a drug addict.”

That’s absurd, right? Taking a prescribed medication in recommended doses doesn’t make you a drug addict. That makes you a responsible adult.

But the above scenario would never really happen, right? No one would ever claim that taking medication to treat diabetes, Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s would make you a drug addict.

But, apparently, such an understanding does not apply to the millions of Americans who take medication to manage mental illnesses. To Americans like me.

For eighteen years, I’ve been diagnosed with a major depressive and generalized anxiety disorder. I’ve been suicidal. The medication which I take, in conjunction with therapy and lifestyle changes, has saved my life.

About five years ago, I made the decision, as a Pennsylvania State Representative, to start discussing my battles with depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation. I did so in response to the stigma which surrounds mental illness. Depression isn’t a weakness. It can’t be willed away. Taking medication doesn’t say anything about one’s character any more than having heart disease indicates a moral failure.

That’s why I was so disheartened to read Mr. Lazarus’ column: It took serious issues like over-prescribing  and discontinuation syndrome – issues which deserve thoughtful, reflective discussion – and conflated them with drug addiction. To be sure, medication is not a panacea. It often takes months, if not years, to find appropriate medication and dosage. Prescribers sometimes fail to appropriately monitor their patients. Side effects are real and dangerous. All of these issues demand thoughtful consideration and conversation.

However, such problems exist in virtually all areas of medicine, and no one would reasonably or seriously suggest that we should stop prescribing scientifically proven medication to people in need. Yet, that is exactly what some suggest when it comes to mental health.

Mr. Lazarus refers to himself as a “drug addict” for taking anti-depressants. Yet, he also discusses being a diabetic who takes medication for chronic Type 1 diabetes. Strangely, he declines to refer to himself as a “drug addict” for requiring insulin to manage his blood sugar levels. I wonder why.

We should never, ever be so foolish as to conflate appropriate use of anti-depressants with drug addiction. To do so makes people who take anti-depressants to live sound like sound like a caricature of a drug addict, desperate for their next hit of smack…or, as I like to call it, the pills which help me not want to kill myself every morning.

Contrary to what some believe, anti-depressants are not happy pills which whisk you away on a cotton-candy cloud, carrying you to Lollipop Island to float with gumdrops all day long. What they do is help you control symptoms, improve your mood and make other forms of change – like psychological therapy and lifestyle changes – easier to obtain.

Taking medication for mental illness doesn’t change who you are. It allows you to be who you are.

Far too many Americans have ignored their own minds and medical advice, choosing to try and “tough out” spells of depression, to “man up” or ignore these painful and rehabilitating symptoms. Too many Americans have powerful fears that taking anti-depressants makes you weak. This stigma must be crushed and rebutted in the same way intelligent society has pushed back on those who attack vaccines.

Anti-vaxxers and those who deny the positive impact of anti-depressants are flip sides of the same coin: They seek to use pseudoscience and stigma. Science has given us incredible tools which can be used to our great physical and emotional benefit. To ignore those tools, or to somehow wrap their use in shame, serves only to pull us into a darkness which we should have left behind decades ago.

The nearly 1 in 5 Americans who suffer from mental illness – including me – deserve to have our challenges discussed with respect and a comprehensive understanding of mental health treatment options. This discussion is simply incomplete without discussing the importance, effectiveness and risks of medication. No one who takes an anti-depressant is a drug addict, any more than a person who takes Prilosec for heartburn is addicted to not having their chest feel like is on fire.

The facts are stark. Depression rates are skyrocketing, rising sharpest among today’s youth, who have seen nearly 50% increases in rates of depression. 47,000 Americans – and 2,000 in my home state of Pennsylvania – died by suicide last year, an increase of 34% since 1999.

We need serious, sober conversations about mental illness and how to treat it. There are many concerns with anti-depressants. These are valid, serious concerns which must be addressed. But these conversations must occur using words and arguments which shatter stigma and support science. To do otherwise does an incredible disservice to those of us who suffer.

 

Oregon students can now take mental health days

So, in my political world, I’m a pretty progressive guy. One of the states which I have always watched closely has been Oregon. Oregon has been a progressive success story of epic proportions: From the environment to minimum wage increases to abortion rights to gun control to expanding economic opportunity to all residents, Oregon has led the way. 1

And then, I came across this story: Teens in Oregon can now take mental health days as an excused absence from school. It was done largely to address the stigma which surrounds mental health. According to Debbie Plotnik of Mental Health America:

“The first step to confront this crisis is to reduce the stigma around it. We need to say it’s just as OK to take care for mental health reasons as it is to care for a broken bone or a physical illness.”

The law specifically states that students can have up to five absences in a three month period – and anything more requires a written excuse to the principal.

In response to concerns that the law would make it easier for students to get out of school, Haily Hardcastle, one of the teenagers involved with the lobbying for the law, said, that students would take time off with or without the law – but the new law may encourage students to take their own mental heath more seriously, and would require schools to recognize mental health in their attendance policies.

Oregon’s rate of suicide is 40% higher than the rest of the nation.

I’m…I’m really intrigued by this. It does seem like a lot of days. And I wonder how this effort would interact with other attempts to remedy chronic absences – something that we really struggle with in my home school district of Allentown. But, I believe that Mrs. Hardcastle’s comments are correct – a kid is gonna take a day off if they want to, and if we can encourage them to discuss why, maybe we can help save their life.

Regardless, I’m extremely intrigued, and I’m hoping to pursue this one more. And if you have any feedback, I’d love to hear it!

 

Yes, people really are this stupid about mental illness and suicide

Sometimes, I find myself falling victim to the availability heuristic, and if you read this blog on a regular basis, I bet you do too.

For those of you unaware, the availability heuristic is defined as: “A mental shortcut that relies on immediate examples that come to a given person’s mind when evaluating a specific topic, concept, method or decision. The availability heuristic operates on the notion that if something can be recalled, it must be important, or at least more important than alternative solutions which are not as readily recalled.”

Why am I mentioning this now? Well, if you read this blog, I’m guessing you have an interest in mental health and mental illness. It’s probably a subject you follow closely and in which you are are well educated. I bet you have more evolved views on the causes and symptoms of mental illness and understand it’s complexities. And, I’d bet that the vast majority of people you interact with feel the same way.

Ahhhh, dear reader, allow me to share portions of an Email I just received. Among it’s gems:

  • “People commit suicide because they lack hope. True hope comes from putting your trust in the Lord Jesus Christ.”
  • “A troubled person who believes in evolution and does not know anything about the Bible, may turn to suicide as an escape.”
  • “If you want to reduce suicide, introduce the Bible back into school and stop teaching the fairy tale of evolution.”

First, a disclaimer, and let me make it crystal clear: The purpose of this entry is not to mock anyone’s faith or sincerely held beliefs. Rather, it’s to point out an absolutely ridiculous example of thinking. Faith absolutely assists some in the fight against depression and hopelessness. That’s wonderful. If that’s something which may work for an individual, I highly, highly encourage them to find a method of counseling which fits their views on religion, God and spirituality.

But the notion that prayer, Jesus or teaching creationism will cure depression and suicide for everyone is absurd.

Mental illness is highly complex. It often requires time, resources and multiple, simultaneous methods of treatment and lifestyle changes in order to fully address and treat. There is no one size fits all bullet. But what absolutely will not help is judgmental statements like the above, or the adherence to a one-sized fits all approach.

I’d also challenge anyone who makes a statement about reducing depression, mental illness and suicide to make sure that their comments are backed up by research. As I’ve noted in previous entries, there is a complex relationship between religion and mental illness, but as best I could find, there is ZERO relationship between teaching evolution and mental illness. Someone correct me if I’m wrong.

We’ve made great strides in the area of mental illness of late, but we still have a long long way to go. And absolute statements like the ones made above will do nothing but drive people further into the shadows.

There are people this uneducated out there, and I hope this is something we can all remember.

Five ways YOU – yes, you – can help beat mental health stigma

One of the things I am most passionate about when it comes to mental health is trying to beat the stigma surrounding it. I was asked a very interesting question yesterday: What does that look like? What is a stigma free world?

The best answer I have for that very valid question is this: We treat and view physical and mental illness in the same light. And we don’t view mental illness as being anything other than what it is: A serious, dehabilitating and potentially deadly category of diseases which require time, resources and care to heal.

Unfortunately, we don’t live in a society where that is currently the case. We know that nearly one out of five American adults have some sort of mental illness, but only 30-40% seek treatment.  Stigma continues to play a role in this disconnect and in people’s assumptions of what it’s like to live with a mental illness.

So, rather than asking a broader question about what we can do, as a society, let me put the question to you in a more direct, personal terms: What can you do to help end mental health stigma?

Here are five suggestions. They are all relatively simple. You may have thought about them already. But I think it’s important that all of us realize we have a role to play in terms of ending mental health stigma.

1) You have to talk about it: One of the most difficult things which people can do in terms of mental health is also one of the simplest: You have to talk about it. If you are depressed, say it. If you are anxious, say it. According to research, anti-stigma campaigns which are most effective are those which feature real, “normal,” identifiable people discussing their mental illness. This means that the most effective person to attack mental health stigma is…well, you.
2) Encourage people to seek help: If you are one of the lucky ones who has avoided mental illness, that’s wonderful. You still have an important role to play: If someone you know is in pain and needs help, encourage them to get it. Be supportive and non-judgmental, but help them get the help that they need and deserve.
3) Encourage an equal perspective between physical & mental illness: I might be off here, but I believe ending stigma means that we take mental illness the same way we take physical illness. That, I believe, is important, because most people aren’t going to look at a broken arm and think, “Gee, I can just tough it out!” When someone gets physically sick, we usually don’t think twice about helping them get the help they need. I think this is a good model for breaking mental health stigma.
4) Watch your language: Here’s one that I must confess I sometimes violate, and I need to stop. Expressions like, “I’m crazy” or “You’re nuts” don’t help anything. All that does is reinforce a negative stigma about mental health. There has been an awesome campaign in the past couple of decades to eliminate use of the word “retard” as a negative description, and it’s fantastic. The campaign operates on the principle that we are a better society if we are more inclusive. This has to extend to how we discuss mental health as well.
5) Don’t just talk about failures and pain – talk about successes and joy. I think part of the problem with the way we discuss mental health is we discuss it. We talk about failures, about challenges, about struggles. When you discuss mental health, don’t just concentrate on the negatives. Talk about joys and victories. Talk about beating struggles, about thriving. Mental illness can, of course, be extraordinarily painful, but that makes our victories sweeter. Talk about thriving, not just the pain.
As always, I’d love to hear from you! Anything you want to add? Let us know in the comments below!