The Effects of Stigma and Labeling on Mental Illness Patients and Their

Mental Illness, that name conjures up a vast array of frightening images in the minds of the general public and media; an unfair image that is stigmatizing for the sufferer. The stigma is also pervasive in the mental health field, where patients who receive treatment are sometimes treated unfairly by the practitioners, who are supposed to help them in the first place. This is what my paper will discuss, the effects of stigma and labeling on patients and their families. I have culled many sources from scholarly papers, that back up my claim. I will describe what I thought of about the articles and how they pertain to the main points I am trying to make. In our society today, mental health treatment is considered to be much more humane and scientific, rather than the barbaric treatment given to mental health patients in the past. Although the psychiatric profession has considerably advanced, there seems to be a growing consensus from many mental health consumers and families, that the stigma of the past is still present in the treatment of mental illness today. It is considered inhumane to deprive someone in getting adequate treatment for their mental illness, but that is what is happening to many disabled mental health consumers. The majority of mental health consumers cannot afford to get the advanced treatment that is available to them, unless they either have enough money or good insurance coverage; most however do not. It is usually impossible to get into the specialty psychiatric clinics, like Stanford and UCLA, where treatment is very advanced and up-to date, therefore consumers have to be treated often within the county's mental health system; which is very rated very poor. In the article published by: Sharon Bowland, ... ...ple with mental disorders. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 43(3), 183-200. doi:10.1080/00048670802653349. Kondrat, D., & Teater, B. (2009). An anti-stigma approach to working with persons with severe mental disability: Seeking real change through narrative change. Journal of Social Work Practice, 23(1), 35-47. doi:10.1080/02650530902723308. Rao, H., Mahadevappa, H., Pillay, P., Sessay, M., Abraham, A., & Luty, J. (2009). A study of stigmatized attitudes towards people with mental health problems among health professionals. Journal of Psychiatric & Mental Health Nursing, 16(3), 279-284. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2850.2008.01369.x. Wesselmann, E., & Graziano, W. (2010). Sinful and/or possessed? Religious beliefs and mental illness stigma. Journal of Social & Clinical Psychology, 29(4), 402-437. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.