In the US, 1 in 5 people will struggle with mental illness each year so in this episode we are looking at why mental illness and mental health are so stigmatized, how the media adds to this stereotype, and how we can help fight these stigmas ourselves.

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Key Points:

How mental health stigmas began
The damage these stigmas cause
Mental health stigmas in minority communities
How the media portrays mental health
How you can affect change on these stereotypes

Notable Quote:

if we want to end or even just reduce the stigma around mental illness and mental health, then we need to recognize that we have it and we need to catch ourselves when those things happen. The only person we can focus on improving is ourselves by catching ourselves. - Gregg Clunis

Resources:

Mental Health UK: https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/a-to-z/s/stigma-and-discrimination

The stigma of Mental Disorders: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5007563/

Understanding the impact of stigma on people with mental illness: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1489832/

Mental Health & Stigma: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/why-we-worry/201308/mental-health-stigma

Mental Health By The Numbers: https://www.nami.org/learn-more/mental-health-by-the-numbers

Global mental health: five key insights which emerge from the data: https://ourworldindata.org/global-mental-health

Black Therapists Explain the Stigma of Mental Health in Minority Communities: https://thethirty.whowhatwear.com/mental-health-in-minority-communities

Drapetomania: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drapetomania

Challenging Mental Health Stigma In The Black Community: https://www.nami.org/Blogs/NAMI-Blog/July-2018/Challenging-Mental-Health-Stigma-in-the-Black-Comm

Mark Interviews Author Ann Coulter.