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Argumentative Essay On Mental Ill Health

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It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver – Mahatma Gandhi
Good health is central to human happiness and well-being. Without this, there cannot be complete peace and contentment in the world. It also makes an important contribution to economic growth, as healthy populations tend to live longer, are more productive, and save more. If we have better health, we have everything. It is what we always take for granted till we feel a bit under the weather. Over the years there have been incredible advancements in the world of medicine but a huge amount of people don’t have access to even basic healthcare.
Preventable ailments like Tuberculosis, malaria, poliomyelitis and HIV - AIDS still claim millions of lives each year, …show more content…

Stigma and discrimination against the ill prevent people from seeking mental health care. Misunderstanding and myths surrounding mental ill health are widespread. Despite the existence of several effective treatments for mental disorders, there is a belief that they are either untreatable or that people with mental disorders are incapable of making decisions or that mental illness doesn't exist at all. This stigma can lead to abuse, denial of basic needs, rejection and isolation and exclude people from health care or support.
Human rights violations of people with mental and psychosocial disability are routinely reported in most countries. Very few countries have an actual legal framework that adequately protects the rights of people with mental disorders.
Globally, there is huge inequity in the distribution of skilled human resources for mental health. Shortages of psychiatrists are among the main barriers to providing adequate treatment and care in low and middle-income developing countries. The rate of psychiatrists in high income developed countries is 170 times greater and for nurses is 70 times greater than the ones in the underdeveloped

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The stigma does not only pertain to the people who suffer from the mental illness but those who provide the treatment as well. Psychiatry is criticized for it’s a medicalization of normal behavior. As well as its lack of cultural competency ultimately leading to misdiagnosis of minority patients. With the recent change in global demographics,

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In the second issue of Psychological Science in the Public Interest Vol. 15, Corrigan, Druss and Perlick (2014) discuss the role of stigma in limiting access to care and in discouraging people from pursuing mental health treatment. From a public standpoint, the stereotypes that people with mental illness are dangerous, unpredictable, responsible for their illness (Crisp et al, 2000), or generally inept, can lead to active discrimination, such as excluding people with these conditions from employment and social or educational opportunities (Parle S 2012). Furthermore, service users have recorded incidents of social discrimination in the community, such as being physically and verbally attacked by neighbours as well as strangers, having their property vandalised, or being barred from entering a range of businesses, and that those with addictions or psychotic illness were more likely to experience this than those with non-psychotic illness. Examples of being spoken to as if they were stupid or like children, patronising behaviour and attitude from the community and, in some instances, having questions addressed to those accompanying them rather than service users themselves were also reported (Lyons et al, 2009).

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Involuntary admission and medication have been administered to the mentally ill and disabled for centuries; this course began in the 1800s when the first insane asylum opened in Britain after the 1808 County Asylum Act. While many organizations are aimed at equal rights for all who are not a direct danger to themselves or others, there is still large injustice for the mentally handicapped when his/her rights are violated by being pushed into unnecessary hospitalization. Countless innocent, mentally ill people are impacted by having treatments they are involuntarily given; fortunately, organizations such as Mental Disability Rights International are attempting to make a difference by fighting against the treatment the mentally disabled receive

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In the book Girl, Interrupted, by Susanna Kaysen, one of the biggest focal points is mental illness. Mental illness can be tough to talk about, simply because the phrase “mental illness” encompasses such a wide range of conditions and conjures up images of deranged people, but it is very important, especially in this book. There is a certain stigma that people who are put into mental hospitals because they have medical problems or are insane and a possible danger to society. While this is sometimes true, it is far more common for patients to need help for a disorder, but just don’t know where to go or what to do, and can end up putting themselves or someone else in danger.

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“At the root of this dilemma is the way we view mental health in countries. Whether an illness affects your heart, your leg or your brain, it’s still an illness, and there should be no distinction,” stated the First Lady, Michelle Obama, when she was asked about how mental illness should be recognized by countries around the world. Mental illnesses are a relatively new discovery, and people have debated the rights of disabled people, how they should be treated, and what scientific help can be given to them. During the 1930’s research on mental illnesses was just being introduced, so many experiments were done on people that could be considered inhumane. People with mental illnesses should not be treated differently than others, and recent discoveries

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It may surprise you that, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) and World Bank, at least 400 million people lack access to essential health services. They said, at least 6 percent of people in 37 low and middle income countries are living in poverty because they must spend the money for health. Health care services is the most importance thing that we need because it is not only for improve the health but also through individual behaviour and lifestyle choices such as quitting smoking, eating the nutritious food and living a healthy lifestyles.

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In 2001, the World Health Organization (WHO) identified stigma and discrimination towards mentally ill individuals as “the single most important barrier to overcome in the community.” Stigma can encourage discrimination against individuals with mental illness. In turn, this effects how a person who is stigmatized views themselves. For instance, when a stigmatized person is directly denied resources like a job, housing, or healthcare, this puts that person at a disadvantage. Stigmatized people then experience discrimination at all levels, such as economic, social, legal, and institutional (Davey, 2017).

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According to statistics released by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration in 2014, 42.5 million American adults, which is 18.2% of the total adult population in the United States, suffers from a mental illness (5,6). Mental illnesses includes a wide range of diseases that affects the brain and displays changes in mood, thoughts, and behavior. People suffering with mental illnesses are not only challenged by the side effects resulting from the disease, but also they are challenged by prejudices and stereotypes based on misconceptions of these mental illnesses. Because of these misconceptions, people are robbed from opportunities to get efficient jobs, satisfactory housing, beneficial health care, or even any affiliations

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Thank you for sharing your experiences regarding this delicate topic. I consider you have brought very valid and interesting points. Some people that emit comments about people in welfare are unaware of the delicate of this situation. It is true that some people abuse the system, but I agree that most people really need it. People receiving government financial aid have different characteristics and needs that might invalid them to have a stable good job.

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Stigma is “... a socio-cultural process by which members of marginalized groups are labeled by other people as abnormal, shameful, or otherwise undesirable” (Michaels, Lopez, & Corrigan, 2012). A 2013 nationwide survey revealed that 46% of Americans believed that the seriously mentally ill were more likely to be dangerous than members of the general public (McGinty, Webster, & Barry, 2014). These negative attitudes are also held by mental health professionals, which most likely results from them “...working with patients when they are in the most disturbed phase of their illness, despite this not being a typical characteristic of everyday mental illness” (Cleary, Deacon, Jackson, Andrew, & Chan, 2012). Society tends to view individual violent acts as a comprehensive representation of the mentally ill as a whole, but this violent depiction of mental illness is inaccurate in most cases. In fact, “...less than 3% to 5% of US crimes involve people with mental illness … [and] fewer than 5% of the 120,000 gun-related killings in the United States between 2001 and 2010 were perpetrated by people diagnosed with mental illness” (Metzl & Macleish, 2015).

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It appears that a mentally ill child faces malicious stigma by their families. The study found out that parents would not regard mentally ill children as theirs, and would reject mentally ill children in social institutions such as schools and hospitals (Adewuya & Makanjuola, 2008). From the study, stigmatizing attitudes were prevalent among health care practitioners at about 30%. In particular, the responses that nurses gave show that the victims receive poor care from their family members and thus, are sub-human. One respondent confirmed the fear that nurses feel there is a need for special training to provide quality care for people with mental illness, thereby showing stigmatization at the professional

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Why do the people of today still associate stigma, shame and blame with mental health issues? Mental health issues are extremely and widely misunderstood. Despite the fact one in four people are likely to experience some kind of mental health problem a year in the United Kingdom. “Mental health is a person’s condition with regard to their psychological and emotional well-being and it affects how we feel, think and act. It also helps to determine how we handle situations such as stress, how we relate to others and how we make decisions.

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