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• The Roots of Stigma and Discrimination
...According to the United States Surgeon General, “stigmatization of people with mental disorders has persisted throughout history”. Stigma refers to attitudes and beliefs that motivate individuals to fear, reject, and avoid anyone who is seen as “different” or who are labeled, diagnosed or perceived to have a mental disorder. The stigma surrounding mental illness is so strong that it places a wall of silence around the person and leads to limited social support, poor life satisfaction, unemployment, or loss of income. It reduces access to resources and normal life opportunities. More tragically, it deprives people of their dignity, and leads to low self-esteem, isolation and hopelessness. Children and adults who experience discrimination and stigma may be scarred for life.
Discrimination occurs when people and societies act upon their feelings of rejection and discomfort with individuals who have a mental illness, and deprive them of their rights and life opportunities that are afforded to all other people, such as housing, employment, education and opportunities for civic life. Stigma results in discrimination and abuse.
Abuse is another form of discrimination, which is illegal and occurs frequently:
• Unnecessarily violent responses from police often lead to death and severe injury of people in mental or emotional distress.
• Children struggling with emotional disturbance are shunned by peers and taunted or bullied in their schools and neighborhoods.
• Individuals who present with imminent violent behavior in inpatient hospital settings may be put in seclusion and/or restraints to control behavior, and if protocols and regulations are not followed according to the law, this may constitute abuse of patient rights.
The National Alliance estimates about one in seventeen Americans suffer from a serious mental illness, and mental illness affects one in five families. But as common as it is, nearly two-thirds of all people with diagnosable mental disorders do not seek treatment. This is a serious problem, since early identification and treatment is generally associated with better outcomes. Stigma and discrimination often contributes to individuals afflicted with mental disorders not seeking mental health services.
An additional challenge for individuals with a mental health disorder is access to physical health care. Accessing physical health care is a barrier for people who have a mental illness. They experience significant disparities in physical health care, receiving fewer medical services than those without a mental illness. This is especially concerning as individuals with mental illnesses life span is 25 years shorter than the average person, due to having a higher risk for diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, cancer and other life-threatening physical health conditions resulting from smoking, a poor diet, side effects of psychotropic medications and a lack of exercise.
Problems in accessing mental health care are especially serious for racial and ethnic minorities. As these groups grow, the lack of access to culturally and linguistically appropriate mental health services for people of diverse cultural background is tantamount to a public health crisis. When individuals face the challenge of recovering from mental distress, crisis, trauma, and illness, or are shunned, avoided, deprived of employment,housing, relationships and other life opportunities, the impact can be devastating. Stigma can lead adults and children to feel ostracized, damaged, flawed, defective and unwanted. It can lead individuals who need treatment and recovery services to face a life of isolation and unfulfilled dreams and hopes, not to mention untreated mental health conditions.
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...MHSA PROP 63
