I believe that there is so much stigma associated with mental health because of social media and the internet. Most of the time, when mental illness is discussed, it is regarding the negative side effects of the illness. When a mental illness is talked about in public, it’s usually shown as the person acting “crazy” or not acting “normal”. People can be very judgemental and if someone does not look or act a certain way, people put labels on them and this can cause the stigma that has been known to be associated with mental illnesses. Mental illnesses can cause people to act and do certain things that can be considered “not normal” and this causes people to have a negative view of mental illnesses as a whole. I think that these all can contribute to self-stigma.
A person’s culture or spiritual beliefs may affect the way that they view mental illnesses in many ways. In some cultures, mental illness can be seen as an embarrassment to a person or their family. People of different cultures can also just avoid the topic completely. They believe that if they do not talk about it or acknowledge it, that it does not exist or will just go away. Where and how you live can also have an impact on the response to mental illness. If you are living in a rural area, there may be less of a chance for you to have easy access to healthcare than someone living in a more populated area. This can cause people to not treat their mental illnesses since it it harder for them to get to the doctors.
