One in 17, or about 13.6 million, americans live with a serious mental illness such as schizophrenia, major depression or bipolar disorder (NAMI 1). Suicide is the tenth leading cause of death in the United States, more common than homicide, and the third leading cause of death for ages 15 to 24, with more than 90 percent of those who died by suicide having suffered from one or more mental disorders (NAMI 1). Yet for decades those who suffer from mental disorders rather than physical disorders have been constantly stigmatized, and only recently has the public began moving from traditions of locking away the mentally ill in brutal or insensitive institutions and hiding them away from society (Teitel par. 1). A mental illness is described as
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Novels and books also contain more negative connotations mental health that one might think. Exemplifying this would be the mainstream Harry Potter series, where in one book, Harry is cautioned to stay away from Sirius Black who is known as being “mad”. The newspaper warns the public that he is a danger to anyone opposing or confronting him whether “magic” or “muggle” (Sieff 253). Alongside novels are comic books, in which villains are often portrayed as crazed madmen (Sieff 253). For instance, in the May 2001 issue of Green Lantern, a character named Nero is introduced. He is a villain who is first found in a psychiatric hospital with a diagnosis of schizoaffective disorder. As his story progresses the reader can see that this villain is driven by his disorder to harm others through various flashbacks to his his tormented days spent in the asylum. As a villain Nero’s super powers are activated by the fear found in those around him. Negative messages like these are shown to the younger demographic, and are carried throughout their lives applied in their behavior as they are continuously exposed to such …show more content…
For instance a patient named Cindy, age 6, threw herself onto the floor in the hospital corridor and refused to move or get up. She screamed incessantly and turned red in a rage for a half hour before getting her blood drawn (Pavuluri 1). In this scenario it is not difficult to see why the media portrays mental health in such a negative light. Cindy’s painful scream and immobilization may seem “weird” or “crazy” to the inexperienced or uneducated crowd around her, but to family and friends who are close to her, this type of behavior may be a normal way of life. This objectification can also be seen as a young boy named Joe, age 12, let out a torrent of taunts and criticisms to his psychiatrist, talking so fast that he was almost incoherent, yelling constantly, rationalizing his anger, and calling his mother a "moron" who had "no brains" as if he were a viciously angry ex-husband (Pavuluri 1). Both Cindy and Joe are being affected by bipolar disorder. Which is a mood disorder characterized by a experiencing shift between the opposite and extreme emotional states of mania and depression (Pavuluri 1).The simplest way to put it would be to say that people who have bipolar disorder are sometimes much more "up"—excited, energetic, optimistic, and so forth—than the common man and other times much more "down"—that is, sad, dejected, lethargic, and hopeless
Novels and books also contain more negative connotations mental health that one might think. Exemplifying this would be the mainstream Harry Potter series, where in one book, Harry is cautioned to stay away from Sirius Black who is known as being “mad”. The newspaper warns the public that he is a danger to anyone opposing or confronting him whether “magic” or “muggle” (Sieff 253). Alongside novels are comic books, in which villains are often portrayed as crazed madmen (Sieff 253). For instance, in the May 2001 issue of Green Lantern, a character named Nero is introduced. He is a villain who is first found in a psychiatric hospital with a diagnosis of schizoaffective disorder. As his story progresses the reader can see that this villain is driven by his disorder to harm others through various flashbacks to his his tormented days spent in the asylum. As a villain Nero’s super powers are activated by the fear found in those around him. Negative messages like these are shown to the younger demographic, and are carried throughout their lives applied in their behavior as they are continuously exposed to such …show more content…
For instance a patient named Cindy, age 6, threw herself onto the floor in the hospital corridor and refused to move or get up. She screamed incessantly and turned red in a rage for a half hour before getting her blood drawn (Pavuluri 1). In this scenario it is not difficult to see why the media portrays mental health in such a negative light. Cindy’s painful scream and immobilization may seem “weird” or “crazy” to the inexperienced or uneducated crowd around her, but to family and friends who are close to her, this type of behavior may be a normal way of life. This objectification can also be seen as a young boy named Joe, age 12, let out a torrent of taunts and criticisms to his psychiatrist, talking so fast that he was almost incoherent, yelling constantly, rationalizing his anger, and calling his mother a "moron" who had "no brains" as if he were a viciously angry ex-husband (Pavuluri 1). Both Cindy and Joe are being affected by bipolar disorder. Which is a mood disorder characterized by a experiencing shift between the opposite and extreme emotional states of mania and depression (Pavuluri 1).The simplest way to put it would be to say that people who have bipolar disorder are sometimes much more "up"—excited, energetic, optimistic, and so forth—than the common man and other times much more "down"—that is, sad, dejected, lethargic, and hopeless