Stigma and Discrimination of People Living with Mental Illness

Stigma and Discrimination of People Living with Mental Illness
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Stigma and Discrimination of People Living with Mental Illness
Several individuals living with mental illness in Australia fear seeking medical assistance because of the stigma around the same. These individuals fear that their lives will change when they admit they have a mental health problem, from losing their jobs to losing close friends. The major cause of stigma and discrimination of people living with mental illness in Australia is caused by lack of understanding (Morgan, Reavley, Jorm, & Beatson, 2017). Most people do not understand what mental illness entails, the characteristics and behavior of individuals living with mental illness, and the emotions or feelings these people encounter. People get assume these people’s behavior and emotions based on what the media displays regarding the same. There are three types of stigmas regarding mental illness; self-stigma, public, and institutional stigma. Discrimination of people living with mental illness occurs on several fronts, such as people distancing themselves, limited jobs and chances of getting jobs, and dismissal from current jobs.
The three types of stigmas get categorized depending on the source of the stigma. The individual living initiates Self-stigma with mental illness such that they doubt themselves and feel inferior (Morgan, Reavley, Jorm, & Beatson, 2017). This feeling of life is over results from the misinformation individuals receive on media regarding mental illness. A great example is Cameron Solnordal, an Australian diagnosed with schizophrenia, a mental illness (Sara & Mitchell, 2020). Mr. Solnordal states that once he learned he had schizophrenia, he knew his life had ended. Mr. Solnordal believed that there was nothing he could do to earn a living or provide for his family because of the stigma created by society (Sara & Mitchell, 2020). People know that individuals living with mental illness cannot control their actions; they are impulsive, destructive, and violent. Once an individual discovers they might have a mental illness, they withdraw from the public. Some individuals fear check-up to avoid confirmation or to prevent their social circles from discovering their condition. These people assume that they will be incapable of socializing like before or handling tasks the same way, yet people with mental illness can be as reliable as anyone else. Mr. Solnordal, for example, works from home and has been able to raise and support his family (Sara & Mitchell, 2020). Self-stigma involves self-judgment and loss of self-esteem, but it also originates from public stigma.
The second form of stigma is public stigma, and it entails judgment from anyone in public or society. As earlier mentioned, people have the wrong idea regarding those living with mental illness. Humans understand the medical concept of mental illness, but once they know someone with mental illness conditions like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, they negatively perceive the person (Morgan, Reavley, Jorm, & Beatson, 2017). An excellent example is the assumption that people living with a mental disorder are incompetent. Hiring personnel in various companies will prefer to hire individuals other than those living with mental illness, fearing that they will not be as productive or perform exemplary at their jobs. This assumption has stigmatized individuals living with mental illness (Morgan, Reavley, Jorm, & Beatson, 2017). Another example is friendship. People with a friend who gets a mental illness tend to distance themselves, fearing that the individual may harm them or cause scenes. People living with mental illness get associated with violent behavior, which scares friends and family members, leaving them to spend a lot of their time alone or segregated.
The final type of stigma is the institutional stigma that involves policies and laws. Institutional stigma is an indirect type of stigma because it does not relate directly to the individual. An example of institutional stigma is the lack of investment in research regarding mental illness. The government does not invest in mental illness research as it does other diseases or conditions like cancer. This lack of investment in research is a form of stigma because it shows that the government considers it a non-issue or a non-solvable problem (Morgan, Reavley, Jorm, & Beatson, 2017).
Another example is the lack of policies that encourage the hiring of people living with mental illness. For example, the government has policies that ensure minority groups like females and people living with disabilities have equal hiring opportunities. However, there are no such policies for people living with mental illness, which means the government does not view these people as competent.
The three types of stigmas have their consequences on people living with mental illness. Some of the effects include reduced self-esteem, lack of hope, reduced possibilities of following through with treatment, difficulties with work and social environments, and increased mental symptoms. As earlier mentioned, public stigma makes individuals stay away from people living with mental illness by avoiding them at work and in social places. Also, self-stigma prompts individuals living with a mental illness to distance themselves from others because they feel unwanted, and they fear they could cause harm to the people they love (Morgan, Reavley, Jorm, & Beatson, 2017). Low self-esteem results from the feeling of unwantedness and incompetency. Most individuals in Australia give up, like Mr. Solnordal, once they realize they have a mental illness. This tendency to give up and the thought that they are incapable of living normal lives results in low self-esteem. Low self-esteem also leads to loss of hope for the future, recovery, and sustainable life (Morgan, Reavley, Jorm, & Beatson, 2017). People living with mental illness in Australia devalue themselves and lose hope in life. They believe nothing good can result from their life, and they lose hope of recovery. Their loss of hope leads them to quit medication because they doubt their chances of fully recovering. People living with mental illness tend to experience increased mental symptoms due to their rejection from stigma, lack of hope, and medication discontinuity (Morgan, Reavley, Jorm, & Beatson, 2017). Loneliness creeps in when these people face rejection from their colleagues, friends, and family members, which may increase mental symptoms. Loss of hope in getting better and being productive results in giving up on medicat...