The stigma of mental illness continues to a shocking degree throughout the world.
A new study has detailed the stigma of mental illness in Canada. Its results are unsettling, to say the least. Here are some of the findings:
- 46% believe that a diagnosis of mental illness is merely an “excuse for poor behavior and personal failings”
- 10% think that people with mental illness could “just snap out of it if they wanted”
- 42% would no longer socialize with a friend diagnosed with mental illness
- 55% would not marry someone who suffered from mental illness
- 25% are afraid of being around someone who suffers from serious mental illness
- 50% would not tell friends or coworkers that a family member was suffering from mental illness. 72% would discuss cancer, and 68% diabetes.
- 50% think alcoholism and drug addiction are not mental illnesses
- 11% think depression is not a mental illness
- 50% think that depression is not a serious condition
There is no reason to believe that attitudes toward the mentally ill are any better in the US. Experience shows us that they may be even be worse. To my knowledge there have been no comparable studies of mental health stigma in the US, amazingly enough.
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