HEALTH & MEDICINE :: FEBRUARY/MARCH 2007
Letting Go of the "Stigma" of Mental Illness
Karen L. Gibble, APRN BC & Lisa Toy, APRN BC
Despite local and national efforts to demystify mental illness and the movement towards medical/mental health parity in insurance coverage, many people still regard "mental illness" as an uncomfortable topic for discussion. Our perceptions of mental illness derive from Hollywood-the brilliant but paranoid schizophrenic mathematician, John Nash, in A Beautiful Mind, the severely depressed but resilient young woman in Girl, Interrupted, the funny, endearing qualities of Monk's Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.
Unfortunately, Hollywood is the only point of reference for many of us in a media-shaped culture. Film versions of therapists, nurses and psychiatrists are often a hybrid of indifference and incompetence. No wonder we are reluctant to admit: (a) that we may have a psychiatric diagnosis; and (b) that we might benefit from professional help. We're not crazy!
Can you recognize yourself in any of these statements?
- I've lost interest in things I used to enjoy. I feel achy and tired all of the time.
- My family tells me to "snap out of it".
- I worry all of the time and I don't know why. No one will understand if I tell them.
- If I could just get my act together, I would be OK.
- I'll call out sick with a migraine. I'm afraid I will have a panic attack at the staff meeting today.
- I'm irritable all of the time and I just can't make decisions. My life is good, so why am I feeling like this? It must be in my head.
The truth is it is not "all in your head". It is not an illness of "character". The symptoms are real and may be a sign of a mental health issue which is a real medical illness. Just as high cholesterol or high blood pressure are diseases with a broad spectrum of severity and responsiveness to diet, exercise and medication, mental illness diagnoses also have a similar range and responsiveness to treatment.
If you could "snap out of it" wouldn't you have done that already? Do you feel so alone thinking that no one else feels this way or that no one would understand how you feel?
Be assured that you are not alone. Mental health disorders cross all demographic lines: gender, socioeconomic class, age or race. In any given year, one in ten Americans overall experience some disability from a mental health disorder. In fact a three-year study of a large corporation, as reported by the American Psycho-logical Association, showed that 60% of employee absences were due to psychological problems.
If uncomfortable symptoms are keeping you from feeling like yourself or preventing you from completing your daily activities at home and/or work, seek help. Recognizing a need for professional assistance is a positive step forward. It takes courage to ask for help, and what a difference it can make in your life! With effective treatment, which may include talk therapy, medication or a combination of both, you can optimize your functioning by learning to incorporate personal strengths you already have and to integrate new, positive coping strategies.
Karen Gibble, APRN, BC is a psychiatric advanced practice nurse with eight years of experience providing both counseling and medication management for people of all ages who are struggling with mental health issues. She is co-founder of Advanced Treatment Options, LLC, a nurse-run practice dedicated to providing personalized, holistic care in a professional, accepting and understanding manner. She can be reached at 1-800-211-1202 ext 17122.
