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MYTHS AND FACTS ABOUT MENTAL DISORDERSThere are so many myths about mental disorders that it would be impossible to cover them all. My purpose is to make people aware that most of what they think they know about mental illness is mostly untrue. Education about mental illness is the key to controlling the myths. Below is a list of some of the most common myths, and the facts to show how off base society is in their thinking about mental illness. MYTH: Schizophrenics have multiple personalities. FACT: Schizophrenia is a completely different disorder than Multiple Personality Disorder. Although Schizophrenics may hear voices in their head or other phenomena, they tend to dissociate less than those with multiple personalities. MYTH: Mental illnesses are not real diseases. FACT: Psychiatric disorders have been positively linked to a biological origin, even though they cannot be detected through blood tests or biopsies. MYTH: People with mood disorders never get better. FACT: With the right kind of help, people with mood disorders are often able to live happy, healthy, and productive lives. MYTH: Prozac is the new wonder drug. FACT: Cheap cliches like "What's the matter, didn't take your Prozac today?" supports harmful and incorrect stereotypes. Prozac is an antidepressant medication, in a family with many others. The media turned it into a buzzword, creating a sensationalistic frenzy by slanting news stories to stir up controversy. MYTH: Many stories you've heard about psychiatric hospitals. FACT: Our culture seems to have taken the extremes and is holding them up as the models. Things like The Funny Farm, Straightjackets, Men in White Coats, etc. Restraints and isolation are used in extreme cases. For the greatest part, patients share rooms, and participate in group and individual therapy in order to get their lives back in control. MYTH: If you talk about suicide, you won't do it. FACT: Any indication of suicide should be taken seriously, because they often lead to plans, attempts, or completions. MYTH: The mentally ill are dangerous, violent, or likely to commit crimes. FACT: The mentally ill are more likely to become victims of crime rather than perpetrators. Because most mental illnesses manifest themselves in a passive behavior, they make the sufferer more susceptible. Society has twisted the exceptions like Jeffrey Dommer and Susan Smith, and made it the rule.
BY RICHARD SUTPHEN
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 BipolarConnection
2001 - 2008
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