The Urban Legend

The School Newspaper of Urban School of San Francisco

The Urban Legend

The School Newspaper of Urban School of San Francisco

The Urban Legend

Editorial: Changing the mindset on mental health in America

It was a cry for help from a mother who doesn’t want to be part of the next Newtown. “No one wants to send a 13-year-old to jail,”wrote Liza Long, a blogger whose son is mentally ill, on anarchistsoccermom.blogspot.com. But so- ciety, “with its stigma on mental illness and its broken healthcare system, does not provide us with other options. Then another tortured soul shoots up … a kindergarten classroom. And we wring our hands and say, ‘Something must be done.’”

What can we do to prevent another Newtown? Changing how we think and talk about mental illness could be a start.

First, we need to understand that mental illness does not mean violence. Violence does not mean mental illness.

True, data often show a powerful connection between the two. According to a 2012 Mother Jones study of the 62 most recent mass murders in America, 38 of 62 perpetrators“displayed signs of possible mental health problems.”

Mental illness also is remarkably common. The National Institute of Mental Health estimates that about one in four Americans suffers from “a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year” as defined by the “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.”Such data can make us believe that mental illness and violence are inescapably connected.

But the truth isn’t that simple.

In a Dec. 2012 editorial, the Bangor Daily News urged America to talk “in a way that doesn’t add to the stigma already attached to people with psychological disorders — what makes someone more likely to act violently.” Instead of a diagnosis, the editorial urged readers to consider factors that can result in tipping points, such as “a history of violence; substance abuse; and lack of a support system.”

We repeat: Mental illness does not mean vio- lence, nor vice versa. Nature may cause mental illness, but it’s nurture — or the lack of it — that can tip us over into violence.

We must also change the language we use. “Terms like ‘nutcase’ … are objectionable be- cause the intent of the speaker is to disparage the person being described,” said Dr. Paul S. Applelbaum, former president of the American Psychiatric Association, told National Public Radio last March.

Fortunately, change may be ahead. Last Sep- tember, the Entertainment Industries Council released a style guide for journalists who cover mental illness. It’s needed: EIC President Bryan Dyak noted that“the fast pace of breaking news” can lead to “skewed views” and “discrimination.”

Upgrading our conversations from “wacko” to “bipolar disorder” is not a matter of political correctness, but basic respect.

Mental illness defines a person’s neurological condition, not that person. One day, Liza Long’s son may need you to remember that.

This editorial represents a consensus view of the Legend staff. Comment on this story at urbanlegendnews.org/category/opinions

 

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Editorial: Changing the mindset on mental health in America