The Effects of Stigmatic Assertion

Written By Nishtha Tikalal | September 1, 2020

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It is to believe that people who have any sort of mental illness are crazy. They stereotype and shun them because they think they no longer have the ability to function properly, whether it be at home, work, or school. A mental illness is merely a health condition that affects the thought process, action/behaviour, and emotion. Although it is not justified that stigmas are directly addressed to the people with mental illnesses, it can be analysed that there is a significantly higher percentage of negative perspectives than positive ones.

A stigma is defined as a distinct level of hatred shown by society, given to a particular concept, action, or event. In a sense, it gives an authoritative sense of power to society, ultimately further dehumanising a person for the things they can’t exactly control. Analytical speculation shows that stigmas can be distinguished in two ways: societal and self-stigma.

Public stigma can be seen as one big stereotype. To the eye of society, people with a mental illness present in their lives are perceived to be rogue, “off their rockers,” unapproachable, dangerous, an embarrassment, and the list goes on. By stigmatising the concept of mental illness, the situation presented creates a twisted version of the truth. Not only does this further negative opinion, those who criticise may actually be hurting themselves. By looking down on someone, the dealing hand will feel like they assert a certain level of dominance over the receiving hand. Looking at various perspectives, one may say that “that level of dominance” is to compensate for an insecurity. Something about the concept of mental illness troubles them to the point where the line of perception and reality is blurred.

Everybody reacts to everything. Everybody will handle a situation in a certain way. The three most common reactions are belief in that statement, opposition in that statement, and doing absolutely nothing about it. Whichever way the situation goes, stigma will still take its effect. Whether a being is aware of it or not, stigma will cause a depletion in one’s self-esteem, and result in a plethora of questioning a normalised thought process. For example, if a person thought that they were happy, they were happy. A simple judgement can change the whole scenario of that person for a period of time. They may “try” to fix themselves, as if something was wrong with them in the first place. They may try to solve the issue for themselves, trying to reason with a non-existent explanation that “made them this way.” They may just “ignore” the statement all together. However, “ignoring” something in the present is an action that happens in the conscious. This person may go through life not giving a care, but when something happens and emotions are triggered, that one statement will be the first thing that comes to their mind, hitting them like a train.

As seen from both the public and private eye, stigmas take a toll, whether it was meant or not. Mental illness is a common thing, like diabetes or the coronavirus. It really isn’t anything to be ashamed of, but society’s greatest insecurity suggests otherwise. To repeatedly suggest a level of superiority can be seen as a clear indication of how these issues were globally dealt with through just about anything: history, theatrics, novels, social media, and many more.