| What is Stigma?
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| | community. Some people have been denied
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| Stigma is the use of stereotypes and
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| | loans, health insurance and jobs because
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| labels when describing someone, and it is
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| | of their history of mental health issues.
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| often attached to people who suffer from
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| | Consequently, these people lose their
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| mental health issues. We don't fully
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| | self confidence and may develop further
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| understand how the brain works yet, but
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| | anxiety or depression, on top of the
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| one thing we DO know is that it is an
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| | issues they are already facing.
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| organ. Yet our society doesn't readily
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| | I witnessed this first hand many years
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| accept brain disorders the way we accept
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| | ago, when my brother was diagnosed with
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| other organ disorders. Why is this so?
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| | schizophrenia. The majority of his
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| Stigma is a harsh reality for people who
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| | friends deserted him; they weren't able
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| have mental health problems, because it
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| | to comprehend or cope with his altered
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| prevents them from enjoying a normal and
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| | personality and erratic behaviour. Within
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| productive life. So many people today
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| | months he went from being a popular,
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| feel uncomfortable about mental health
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| | vivacious and outgoing young man to a
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| issues, despite the fact that there is
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| | shattered, isolated loner. Over the
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| growing evidence that more and more
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| | following months, I watched my brother
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| people are developing these problems. In
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| | sink deeper into debilitating depression,
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| fact, many people are so uncomfortable
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| | which ultimately became so unbearable
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| with the stigma that they would rather
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| | that he took his own life.
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| suffer in silence than get help they
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| | What Can We Do?
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| need.
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| | All of us have times when we feel
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| Here are a few of the most common
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| | depressed, anxious or angry. We might
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| misconceptions about mental health
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| | even have a series of bad days, where we
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| problems:
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| | think that nothing will ever go right for
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| Mentally ill people have a weak character
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| | us and the world is against us. For a
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| Mentally ill people are potentially
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| | mentally ill person, these feelings do
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| dangerous.
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| | not go away.
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| People with mental illness should just
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| | So the answer lies in education and
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| "snap out of it"
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| | understanding. If you know someone who
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| Mentally ill people are violent
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| | seems very emotional, down or upset, then
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| The media has only further fuelled our
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| | lead by example; show compassion and
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| distorted beliefs about mental health
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| | understanding, and encourage them to seek
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| issues. Frequently, characters on
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| | help. And if you're suffering silently
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| television and in the movies that have a
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| | yourself, take comfort in the fact that
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| mental illness are depicted as dangerous,
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| | you're not alone and that there is hope.
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| unpredictable and violent.
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| | ***
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| What Are the Effects of Stigma?
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| | You are licensed to publish this article
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| If you became ill you would go to a
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| | free of charge, on condition that the
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| doctor. Once you got better, you would
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| | author's name is included, and the link
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| expect to get on with life as usual. But
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| | to her website remains visible and
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| it's not that easy for people who suffer
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| | clickable to human readers, and as long
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| from mental illness. Often, they can
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| | as the links can be read and followed by
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| suffer from persistent rejections and
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| | the search engine spiders.
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| exclusions by ill-informed members of the
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