7 Myths About Mental Illness

What’s the truth?

About a quarter of adults suffer from a mental illness every year, and millions more people are affected when their friends or family experience mental health problems, say authors Joel L. Young, MD and Chris Adamec. Sadly, mental illness is often dismissed as a behavioral choice or the product of bad character and laziness. The stigma of mental illness can make it challenging to seek treatment, and often leaves those affected feeling guilty, ashamed, and unworthy. If you subscribe to the ten myths that follow, you're (probably completely unknowingly) contributing to the stigma faced every day by those with mental illness and those who love them.

^{Photos: Provided by the author/Shutterstock}

What’s the truth?

Mental illness is a moral failing. Young and Adamec continue: Many people think that a person with mental illness is somehow morally flawed. However, the reality is that good people can become mentally ill. Mental illness fundamentally alters the way people think and it can affect people with superior values as well as those who exhibit criminal behaviors. A person with schizophrenia might hear voices that aren't actually there or see images that aren’t really present. And while the behaviors these thoughts cause don't make much sense to an outside observer, they clearly exist to a person with mental illness. It’s also true that, no matter how hard you try, you cannot pray your way out of mental illness, and simple resolutions to “do better” are doomed to fail. Mental illness is located in the brain, and until the underlying symptoms are treated, the symptoms are likely to continue. Of course, spirituality, a supportive community, and prayer can help a person with mental illness gain support and hope, but these choices are rarely sufficient to combat serious mental health issues.

What’s the truth?

People with mental illness are dangerous. Terrifying reports by the media of mentally ill people who perform horrific acts of violence have formed the image of mentally ill persons as violent people in the public consciousness. But people with mental illness are, as a group, no more violent than people without mental health disorders. In fact, according to the Canadian Mental Health Association, they're between 200 and 450 percent more likely to be victims of violence than the general population. The stigma of mental illness – including the wrongful belief that the mentally ill are invariably violent – can be a powerful deterrent to seeking treatment. As a result,bandoning this false belief is an important step toward ensuring mentally ill people get the help they need and deserve.

What’s the truth?

People with mental illness can't function in society. The odds are good that you know someone with mental illness but you don’t even realize it. Mental health disorders are easily concealed, and the overwhelming majority of people with mental health concerns are functioning, productive members of society. Some mental illnesses can lead to psychosis and similar symptoms that temporarily cause the individual to lose touch with reality. These illnesses, however, are relatively rare, and with proper treatment and disease management, even the most severe mental illnesses don't have to undermine a person's ability to function. Moreover, federal law mandates that people with most mental illnesses be permitted the same rights as all other people. The Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of mental disorder, and requires that employers offer “reasonable accommodations” -- such as an adjusted schedule or a minor change in duties – to enable people with mental health conditions to continue working.

What’s the truth?

Mental illness is rare. Severe psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia are rare but in general, mental illness is not rare. Contrary to its portrayal in movies and novels, however, mental illness can be concealed by some, and not everyone who is diagnosed with a mental illness shows symptoms all the time. For example, a person with depression may put on a brave face successfully, while a person with post-traumatic stress disorder may only show symptoms when under extreme stress. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that depression alone is the third leading cause of disease worldwide, and the National Institute of Mental Health reports that 26.2 percent of Americans suffer from a mental health condition each year.

What’s the truth?

Bad parenting causes mental illness. It's true that abusive parenting and early trauma can increase the likelihood that an individual later suffers from a mental health disorder. However, with exceptions for trauma-induced mental illness, mental illness is caused by processes in the brain. A deficiency in neurotransmitters, lesions in the brain, and similar issues may all give rise to mental health conditions. In addition, many people with mental health disorders have a genetic predisposition to the disorder. Even the best parenting can't cure a mental health condition. Further, blaming parents for their children's' mental health conditions serves to promote mental health stigma, undermining access to treatment and isolating families who struggle with mental illness.

What’s the truth?

Therapy or medication will fix everything. One of the unfortunate realities of mental illness is that there's no quick fix and treatment takes time. This doesn't mean that these disorders aren't real, though. There's no 100% successful cure for cancer or heart disease either, but researchers are steadily working to find better treatment options. Therapy and medication can be a powerful first step toward getting better from mental illness (or cancer or heart disease), but treatment takes time. Many people with a mental illness must try several different medications at different dosages before they see results, and most medications take several weeks to work. Moreover, the same type of therapy won't work on everyone. Finding the right therapist and the right therapeutic modality is key to seeing results, and it can take months of therapy before people with mental illnesses experience noticeable improvements.

What’s the truth?

Children and adolescents don't get mental illnesses; they're just badly behaved or melodramatic. Tantrums and teenage angst are normal; violence, extreme anxiety, and suicidal thoughts are not. Children are just as susceptible to mental illnesses as adults are, and some mental illnesses – such as depression and schizophrenia – tend to emerge during the turbulent teenage years. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), 21 percent of children ages nine to 17 have a diagnosable mental health condition. Blaming abnormal behavior on normal developmental processes can delay access to help and stigmatize families who want the best for their children. It is also true that children with mental illnesses are more likely to drop out of school, to be bullied, and to develop substance abuse problems, so early intervention is the key to success.

What’s the truth?

A healthy lifestyle will cure mental illness. “There's never any harm in eating better, becoming more active, or taking time to enjoy life’s small pleasures,” write the authors in When Your Adult Child Breaks Your Heart. “But if curing mental illness were really this easy, the mental illness rate in this country would plummet. Some people with mental health concerns see improvement with changes in their lifestyle, but lifestyle changes won't cure a disease. Advocating healthy lifestyle choices as a cure-all is just one more way of blaming the mentally ill for their conditions. Instead, the recipe for success is a healthy lifestyle, a supportive community, and the right combination of therapy and medication.