Advocacy

Ten Guidelines for How to Talk About Mental Health

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I was giving a lecture to a group of college students and I described how to show respect toward people with mental health concerns by using appropriate language. As one example, I noted it’s better to say “John has schizophrenia” instead of “John is schizophrenic.” I explained how “John has schizophrenia” puts the emphasis on the person, not his illness, while “John is schizophrenic” equates the person with their illness and perpetuates negative labels and stereotypes about having a mental …

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Stop Discrimination Toward People with Mental Illness

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In a recent post, I discussed “5 Simple Steps to Reduce Stigma About Mental Illness.” In case you missed it, the 5 steps were: 1) Don’t label people who have a mental illness. Use ‘person-first’ language. For example, say “she has schizophrenia” instead of “she’s a schizophrenic.” 2) Don’t be afraid of people with mental illness. Despite inaccurate media stereotypes, people with mental illness aren’t scary or prone to violence. 3) Don’t use disrespectful terms for people with mental illness. …

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5 Simple Steps to Reduce Stigma About Mental Illness

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If you tune into any conversation about mental illness and addiction, it won’t be very long until the term “stigma” comes up. Stigma has various definitions, but they all refer to negative attitudes, beliefs, descriptions, language or behavior. In other words, stigma can translate into disrespectful, unfair, or discriminatory patterns in how we think, feel, talk and behave towards individuals experiencing a mental illness. If you begin to wonder where stigma comes from, that’s a complicated question. It’s almost like …

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“What Do You Know About NAMI?”

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There are many wonderful mental health organizations doing great work all around the world. So, when you single one out for praise, you run the risk of displeasing all the others. I’ll take that risk, because I want to recognize the many fine efforts of NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (www.nami.org). NAMI is near and dear to my heart as I’ve had the privilege to work with my local and state chapters very closely for many years. Origins …

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Suicide Is Something We Can Definitely Live Without

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This is ultimately a tale of heroes and life winning out over death. But first we must acknowledge some clear and painful truths. The tragic epidemic Suicide is a global public health issue and a personal tragedy affecting untold numbers of individuals and families. In case you didn’t know, suicide claimed the lives of over 41,000 Americans in 2013. The overused but attention-grabbing analogy to capture the impact of this number is to imagine 90 jumbo jets full of people …

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How We Think About Mental Illness – Time for Plan B

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Depending on who you talk to, there are dramatically different views of mental illness. One scenario which captures the unpleasant reality many have experienced looks something like this: Plan A – Many people with a mental illness: Have never been diagnosed Have received a diagnosis but have a lack of insight or deny it Are afraid to talk about it Are ashamed to disclose it Never seek treatment for it Are ridiculed and ostracized because of it Want treatment but none …

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How to Be a More Effective Mental Health Advocate

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When I first began my career as a psychologist, I certainly didn’t think of myself as an advocate and didn’t participate in advocacy efforts to improve mental health services. But as I began to work in public mental health settings, I became more acutely aware of the important work of mental health advocates and I got interested in learning more about advocacy. Over the past several years, I’ve been fortunate to be able to engage in mental health advocacy initiatives …

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Help Wanted: Good Citizens to Support People with Mental Illness

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In school, we all learned several ways to be a “good citizen”: vote, participate in community service, be a good neighbor, follow the rules, and treat others with respect. All of these are important responsibilities which contribute to a better society. But did you ever stop to think about how you can be a good citizen by supporting people with mental illness? This is not something most of us were ever taught when we were growing up. Consequently, many intelligent, well-intentioned people don’t know …

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