advertisement

Is Stigma Really That Harmful?

Experiencing mental health stigma is hurtful, but is it really that harmful? Find out how harmful mental health stigma can be at HealthyPlace.

Stigma refers to an experience faced by many different people, including those living with mental health disorders. It happens when someone is judged negatively based on misinformation and characteristics incorrectly believed to be true. Experiencing stigma may mean that someone is excluded, denied opportunities, mocked, avoided, or shunned for reasons that have nothing to do with who they are at their core or all the many strengths and positive attributes they have.

Stigma hurts, but does it really cause actual, life-altering harm? Ongoing research over more than ten years and recently appearing in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology confirms that stigma is indeed harmful, reducing people’s sense of self-worth, increasing distress, and worsening symptoms.

Additionally, stigma has been scientifically shown to be a barrier preventing 35 percent of people experiencing serious mental illness and almost 90 percent of people with substance use disorders from seeking and/or receiving proper treatment. This, in turn, is directly associated with negative mental health outcomes.

An important first step, according to the study authors, is to change the language used when talking about mental illness and the people living with it. So much inaccurate and unscientific terminology is used that it is creating and perpetuating damaging stigma. It’s time to drop derogatory language, slang, and wording that describes people as their symptoms (“depressed” versus “experiencing depression, for example).

Recommended Video

Mental health stigma invades our conversations through the language we use. Language matters when talking about mental illness. Watch this.

Source

National Institutes of Health. (2019, July). Words matter: Language can reduce mental health and addiction stigma, NIH leaders say. Retrieved from https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/words-matter-language-can-reduce-mental-health-addiction-stigma-nih-leaders-say

Articles Related to Stigma

Today's Question: What do you think would be helpful in reducing stigma? We invite you to participate by sharing your thoughts, experiences, and knowledge on the HealthyPlace Facebook page.

------------------------------------------------------------------

From the HealthyPlace Mental Health Blogs

On all our blogs, your comments and observations are welcomed.

Feel free to share your thoughts and comments at the bottom of any blog post. And visit the mental health blogs homepage for the latest posts.

------------------------------------------------------------------

From HealthyPlace YouTube Channel

You've heard that 'I feel' statements are good to use in tough conversations, but how do you use them? Find out here: Watch.

Subscribe to the HealthyPlace YouTube channel

------------------------------------------------------------------

Most Popular HealthyPlace Articles Shared by Facebook Fans

Here are the top 3 mental health articles HealthyPlace Facebook fans are recommending you read:

  1. Tips for Creating a Self-Harm Prevention Strategy
  2. Going to the Renaissance Faire with Schizoaffective Disorder
  3. How Retreating Into Fantasy Can Help You Deal With Reality

If you're not already, I hope you'll like us on Facebook too. There are a lot of wonderful, supportive people there.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Quote About Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

“There is no timestamp on trauma. There isn't a formula that you can insert yourself into to get from horror to healed. Be patient. Take up space. Let your journey be the balm.”

Read more PTSD Quotes.

------------------------------------------------------------------

That's it for now. If you know of anyone who can benefit from this newsletter or the HealthyPlace.com site, I hope you'll pass this onto them. Please share the newsletter on any social network you belong to. For updates throughout the week, follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook, subscribe to our YouTube channel, or follow us on Instagram.

Thank you,
Deborah

Community Partner Team
HealthyPlace.com - America's Mental Health Channel
"When you're at HealthyPlace.com, you're never alone."
http://www.healthyplace.com

APA Reference
Peterson, T. (2021, August 10). Is Stigma Really That Harmful?, HealthyPlace. Retrieved on 2024, March 28 from https://www.healthyplace.com/other-info/mental-health-newsletter/is-stigma-really-that-harmful

Last Updated: August 10, 2021
advertisement

Medically reviewed by Harry Croft, MD

More Info