Research reveals that “public attitudes about groups of people affected by health and social problems are strongly influenced by news and popular media depictions of specific individuals who ‘exemplify’ the problem in question.” Negative depictions may add to widespread stigma and discrimination, and a new study finds that media rarely depicts people being successful in recovery.
How College Students Are Resisting the Mental-Illness Stigma
“Kelly Davis arrived at college carrying heavy baggage—bipolar disorder and an eating disorder. Dragged down by severe depression, she barely made it through her first two years at American University in Washington, D.C. ‘I didn’t go to classes a lot. I didn’t get out of bed,’ recalls Davis, now 22. ‘After freshman year, I got into an abusive relationship. I was drinking heavily, frequently.’ When she felt hopeless, she would tell herself that she would one day be better and try to prevent what happened to her from happening to others.”
Mental Health Myths and Facts
Comic Book Superhero Helps Fight Stigma Surrounding Mental Illness
"Comic books often portray villains as not only evil and violent, but as having a mental illness… ‘That’s why I thought it was important to create a character living with mental illness who is a hero, not a villain,’ Pozios said. He noted that comic books also have a long tradition of social justice advocacy and can play a pivotal role in changing how people with mental illness are represented in entertainment media."
Survey: Mental Health Stigmas are Shifting
“Mental health has a long-standing public perception problem, but the stigma appears to be shifting, at least in the United States, a new survey reveals. Results from a national online survey on mental health, anxiety and suicide indicate that 90% of Americans value mental and physical health equally.”
Anatomy of Addiction: How Heroin and Opioids Hijack The Brain
Recovering substance abusers brave stigma by giving up secrecy
Silence is the Enemy for Doctors who have Depression
"What makes this all worse is that medicine is a profession in which admitting a problem carries a stigma that can have more impact than in others. A study published in 2008 surveyed physicians in Michigan, asking them about their work experiences and if they had depressive symptoms. More than 11 percent reported moderate to severe depression. About a quarter of them reported knowing a doctor whose professional standing had been hurt by being depressed."
Despite the stigma of addiction, I no longer keep my past a secret
“A year ago, I wouldn’t have dreamed of writing so candidly about my own struggles. My willingness to openly discuss that I was once addicted to alcohol and drugs began on October 9, 2014. I was a newly appointed member of the city of Portland’s Substance Use Disorder Task Force, and Michael Botticelli, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, attended our meeting.”