Tag: StigmaStompers

Mental Health

The Stigma of Mental Illness vs. Physical Illness

Beth Leverence

On a sunny August afternoon, I came home from work. I found my 17-year-old son, Aaron, lying on the sofa moaning in pain.  He was very nauseated and running a fever.  That night we took him to the Emergency Room where a CT scan revealed he had appendicitis.  His appendix needed to be removed as soon as possible.  The surgery was scheduled immediately, and gratefully it went smoothly.

The next morning we came back to the hospital to visit Aaron.  Knowing what room he was in, we simply walked through the door of the hospital and took the elevator to the floor where he was staying.  No one stopped us at the hospital entrance and asked who we were visiting.  They never called the nurse’s station on the hospital floor to get permission for us to go to his room. They did not ask us to lock up our personal belongings. We did not have to go through a metal detector before visiting him.  It seems absurd, doesn’t it? Why should you have to pass through metal detectors to visit your loved one in a hospital?

When Aaron was fifteen he became very ill with a difficult-to-treat case of schizophrenia.  As a result, he has spent a lot of his life passing through different mental health facilities.  Every time we visited Aaron at the Milwaukee County Mental Health Complex, we stopped at the front desk. We had to tell them who we came to visit.  They called the ward where he was staying to get permission for us to see him.  Once they confirmed it was ok for us to continue, they had us lock up our belongings.  Finally, they took a metal detecting wand and checked our front and back for weapons.  This process caused me to shake my head in wonderment.  Was my son in a hospital or was he in a prison?

The differences between many Mental Health facilities and hospitals that mainly treat people’s physical issues are noticeable. They don’t just stop at the lobby.  Most hospital rooms are outfitted with comfortable beds, televisions, and walls painted with pleasant colors intended to calm and comfort the patient.  In many mental health facilities Aaron was admitted to it looked like the walls had not been painted for years.  The rooms were often shared by patients. Each patient only had a low platform bed to sleep on.  Patients considered themselves lucky if there was one working TV in a common room. There were only a few channels for them to choose from. Having a TV in their room was out of the question.  I understand that the stark nature of the furnishings and bed linens is intentional. It aims to keep people safe from personal harm.  Still, shouldn’t the intent also be to create a calm and comforting environment to help the patient heal?  I rarely walked into a calm and comforting environment when walking through the halls of a mental health facility. 

Is it any wonder that many people with mental illness don’t seek help for their disorders?  According to the American Psychiatric Association, stigma surrounding mental illness prevents over half of people with mental illness from receiving help for their disorders.  The 3 types of stigma researchers identify are public stigma, self-stigma, and institutional stigma.  Institutional stigma promotes policies. These policies create significant disparities in the environment and care people receive in mental health facilities compared to hospitals for the physically ill.

Aaron is 40 now.  I have observed the institutional care he has received for the past 25 years. I have only seen limited positive change, if any.  In recent years, mental illness has gotten more visibility. This is due to the impact many have felt from COVID-19 and the social policies created because of it.  This is unfortunate, but at the same time, I’m hoping it is a blessing in the long run.  When more people talk about mental illness, understanding increases. With greater understanding, the likelihood of positive change will finally be realized.  Institutional stigma can be reversed.

“Stigma, Prejudice and Discrimination against People with Mental Illness.” Psychiatry.org – Stigma, Prejudice and Discrimination Against People with Mental Illness, Jeffrey Borenstein, M.D., Aug. 2020, https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/stigma-and-discrimination.

Mental Health, Uncategorized

Starting the Conversation

Beth Leverence

Regardless of what church you attend, it is likely you’ll be led by the pastor in prayer on the behalf of and in support of other members of your congregation, community, country, or even someplace else in the world.

The pastor might say something like, “Now, let us come together in prayer for Jim who’s in the hospital recovering from back surgery, and Barbara who was recently diagnosed with cancer.”  Have you ever heard a Pastor say, “Please join me in praying for Joe as he struggles with severe depression”?  I haven’t.  I’ve never heard a Pastor say anything remotely close to that in a church service because Joe doesn’t want anyone to know he suffers from depression. He’s afraid if they know he has depression, they might look at him differently.  Some people will even try to avoid him.

My son, Aaron, first became ill with a mental illness when he was a freshman in high school, many of his teachers came right out and told us they couldn’t understand why he couldn’t just suck it up and manage his behavior.  He needs to be more attentive in class.  He needs to focus on his schoolwork.  It’s his own fault he’s having so much difficulty. That was more than 23 years ago, but sadly I’m not sure much has changed since then.  People are still reluctant to disclose to others when they have a mental illness because there are so many stereotypes and prejudices against people with mental illness.

The only way we can affect change around mental illness is to start a conversation about it.  According to the American Psychiatric Association, one way we can positively influence reducing the stigma associated with mental illness is to speak out and share our personal stories.  My son, Aaron, can no longer effectively share his story.  His mind and body have been severely disabled due to his mental illness.  Once an avid personal journalist and artist, he can no longer pick up a pencil and write down his thoughts or as easily draw a picture.  With his permission, I am speaking out on his behalf and sharing his and my personal stories about mental illness.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health nearly 1 in 5 adults in the U.S. experience mental illness in a given year, and that number is higher for adolescents.  With so many people affected by mental illness, why are we so reluctant to talk about it?  When Aaron first became ill with schizophrenia, my husband and I did a lot of research on mental illness.  Mental illness is due to a chemical imbalance in the most complex part of the human body, the brain.  The specific chemicals in the brain that are out of balance, known as “neurotransmitters”, are dopamine, serotonin, and glutamate.   Very few people are afraid to disclose to others when they’re having a problem with their liver or gall bladder, or other more minor organs in the human body, but when the most complex part of their body, their brain, is failing they’re afraid to talk about it with people. This must change.

Interestingly, when I disclose that I have a son who suffers from schizophrenia to a co-worker or acquaintance, it is not uncommon for them to tell me about their son who has bipolar disease or even that they themselves suffer from depression.  It takes only a few simple words to get the conversation started and the impact can be quite beneficial.  These conversations have a ripple effect, because the more we talk about mental health with other people, the less scary and worrisome it will be.

Over time through these conversations, the stigma associated with mental illness will be reduced.  More importantly, however, the ripple effect can reach beyond a reduction in the stigma.  Increased awareness and understanding of mental illness can fuel change in crisis management, care facilities, and medical research.  That is my prayer so that Aaron and others impacted by mental illness can have a better quality of life and be healthy, productive members of our communities.