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Assignment for Abnormal Psychology. Describe the broad differences among three forms of mental illness, how to educate the client, how to educate the family, and how to help reduce stigma.
Assignment for Abnormal Psychology. Describe the broad differences among three forms of mental illness, how to educate the client, how to educate the family, and how to help reduce stigma.
Assignment for Abnormal Psychology. Describe the broad differences among three forms of mental illness, how to educate the client, how to educate the family, and how to help reduce stigma.
Stigma of Mental Illness As counselors, we will be working with individuals who are experiencing a mental disorder or know someone who has. In order to effectively help these clients, we must be aware of the stigma attached to mental health and how it impacts our clients wellbeing and treatment progress. In this paper, I will focus on three specific disorders: Schizophrenia, Bipolar Disorder, and Dissociative Identity Disorder. First, I will go over some of the broad differences between these disorders. Next, I will address how we can help to educate our clients and their families about mental disorders. Lastly, I will describe the actions I will take to help reduce stigma towards mental illness. Broad Differences between Three Forms of Mental Illness Schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and dissociative identity disorder all share similar symptoms, which can lead to confusion and misdiagnosis. Thus, it is also important to be able to distinguish these disorders from each other. There has been extensive research on bipolar disorder and, with proper treatment, individuals are able to lead normal lives and develop healthy relationships. By contrast, schizophrenia has less favorable prospects as many people with this disorder struggle with remaining in treatment. Due to the symptoms of this disorder, such as hearing voices, individuals have difficulty functioning in society and are unable to keep employment. In addition, comorbid disorders (such as depression) are usually due to the schizophrenia itself. Individuals with dissociative identity disorder (DID) also hear voices; however, these voices belong to their different identities. The impact of DID on an individuals life varies-for some these identities help them cope with life, for others their different
Stigma of Mental Illness
identities take over. Similar to schizophrenia, depression in these individuals is secondary to DID. The main difference between schizophrenia and DID is that people with schizophrenia do not have different identities. The voices they (schizophrenia) hear belong to others). In addition, people with DID do not experience delusions or hallucinations and the voices they hear are a part of them. Educating the Client Individuals with mental illness may need additional assistance in treating and managing their disorder. Counselors can help them by providing education, such as different treatment and medication options. Some clients may be resistant to the idea of medication due to the negative connotations associated with mental health. Counselors can help reduce this stigma by discussing the nature of their disorder and the possible side effects of prescription medications. In addition, counselors can dispel myths related to mental illness and help the client normalize mental illness as something that is a part of them, but not all of them. Educating the Family Family beliefs and opinions can play an important role in a persons decision to seek treatment for mental illness. As discussed earlier, the stigma of mental illness often prevents individuals from getting help. Counselors can address some of the barriers that may present within the family by providing education to help them understand how mental illness occurs (genes, chemistry, etc.) and the importance of treatment. Specifically, families need to know that treatment can be a lengthy process and may need to be adjusted before positive results are seen. In addition, counselors can
Stigma of Mental Illness
discuss how mental illness can affect the rest of the family and provide information on resources, such as support groups, to help themselves as well. Reducing Stigma Although there has been increased awareness in reducing mental health stigma many individuals with a mental disorder still experience negative effects, such as exclusion from social spheres and discrimination in employment. This stigma also affects their emotional health by causing feelings of shame. As counselors, the first step we should take is to examine our own beliefs and biases towards mental illness. Thus, we will better equipped to see our clients as who they are, a whole person, and not as their disorder. This unconditional positive regard and empathy can help reduce some of the shame and embarrassment clients may feel. Counselors can also work to promote education of mental illness through the use of literature, presentations, and mental health awareness events (Penn & Couture, 2002).
Stigma of Mental Illness
References American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Arlington, VA: Author Butcher, J. N., Mineka, S., & Hooley, J. M. (2012). Abnormal psychology (15th ed). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Families and friends of people affected by mental illness. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.sane.org/information/factsheets-podcasts/206-families-and-friendsof-people-affected-by-mental-illness Penn, D. L., & Couture, S. M. (2002). Strategies for reducing stigma toward persons with mental illness. World Psychiatry, 1(1), 20-21. Shallcross, L. (2012). Client, counselor, prescriber. Counseling Today. Retrieved from http://ct.counseling.org/2012/07/client-counselor-prescriber/
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