STIGMAS and MISCONCEPTS

Dr. Sohail Ahmed

Assistant Professor

Miss Sabira Yousuf

Clinical Psychologist

Dept. of Psychiatry

Dept. of Psychiatry

What is Stigma & Misconceptions ?

Stigma

marks an individual out as being

different and evokes some form of
sanction
In common usage the word signifies a
disgrace or defect
Misconcept is simply a wrong concept
which is not based on logical grounds

STIGMAS

Can

you mention any stigmas related to

some diseases?

STIGMAS/MISCONCEPTIONS
RELATED TO VARIOUS
DISEASES:
HIV/AIDS:

HIV/AIDS as punishment (e.g. for immoral

behaviour)
HIV/AIDS as horror (e.g. in which infected
people are demonized and feared)
HIV/AIDS is spread only through sexual
contact.
HIV/AIDS is a contagious illness. (it can
spread through touching, sharing utensils,
talking etc)

EPILEPSY

One teenager with epilepsy described what

happened to her life after the mortifying event
of having a grand mal seizure in front of the
entire school during a school assembly: The
next week I went back to school, and people
treated me different. They didnt want to get
close to me or touch me, probably because
they didnt want to catch the disease. I tried to
explain that you cant catch seizures, but they
didnt understand. I was not included. I was
not invited over to anybodys house anymore.
I felt sad, and alone like nobody cared for
me.

EPILEPSY
WHO estimates that in developing
countries, 60% to 90% of people with
epilepsy receive no treatment, which
they attributed to access to care and
stigma.
Epilepsy is sometimes considered to be
a result of possession by super natural
forces.
An epileptic patient can be treated by
the smell of shoes.

TUBERCULOSIS:

In rural areas of India, young women with TB have a

reduced chance to marry; if they are married, they
may be abandoned by husbands or harassed by inlaws. The diagnosis brings such shame and
discrimination that a health care provider may tell the
patient she has asthma, fearing what will happen to
her.

LEPROSY:

Being treated like a leper is a phrase that refers to

stigmatization of people with leprosy (Hansens
disease), but this phrase is relevant to the experience
of all of those who are marginalized.
These diseases are also considered to be
contagious.

MEDIA AND MENTAL HEALTH

STIGMAS

Newspapers, in particular, often stress a

history of mental illness in the backgrounds of
people who commit crimes of violence.
Most of the television characters with a
mental illness are portrayed to be violent.
Comedians make fun of people with mental
illnesses, using their disabilities as a source
of humor.

MYTHS AND FACTS ABOUT

MENTAL ILLNESS

Myth: People with mental illnesses are violent and

unpredictable.
Fact: In reality, the vast majority of people who have mental
health needs are no more violent than anyone else.
Myth: Mental illnesses cannot affect me.
Fact: Mental illnesses are surprisingly common. they affect
almost every family in our society.
Myth: Mental illnesses are brought on by a weakness of
character or evils of supernatural forces
Fact: Mental illnesses are a product of the interaction of
biological, psychological, and social factors.
hereditary/environmental factors can be responsible for the
onset of mental illness.

MYTHS AND FACTS ABOUT

MENTAL ILLNESS

Myth: Once people develop mental illnesses, they

will never recover.
Fact: Studies show that most people with mental
illnesses get better, and many recover completely.
Myth: Children do not experience mental illnesses.
Their actions are just products of bad parenting.
Fact: A report from the President's New Freedom
Commission on Mental Health showed that in any
given year 5-9 percent of children experience serious
emotional disturbances.
Myth: Children misbehave or fail in school just to get
attention.
Fact: Behavior problems can be symptoms of
emotional, behavioral, or mental disorders, rather
than merely attention-seeking devices.

MYTHS AND FACTS ABOUT

MENTAL ILLNESS

Myth: People with mental illnesses cannot

tolerate the stress of holding down a job.
Fact: In essence, all jobs are stressful to
some extent.
Myth: dealing with mental illness can induce
psychological problems in the therapist.

Fact: scientific evidence does not support this

idea provided that the therapist has a stable
personality.

 Name

some of the misconceptions in

our culture related to health

MISCONCEPTS RELATED TO
ILLNSSES IN OUR CULTURE:

Vitamins are essentially required for every ill person as

well as healthy people.
Parhez is a very important aspect of treatment in
every patient.
Some food items are considered hot (e.g., Garlic,
kalonji) and others are considered cold" (e.g., citrus
fruits)
Misconceptions regarding the normal sexual anatomy
and physiology.
Misconceptions regarding blood donation/taking blood
samples for investigation)
Non pharmacological approaches towards treatment of
certain viral illnesses like hepatitis, measles, chicken
pox.

FACTORS LEADING TO
STIGMAS AND MISCONCEPTS
Culture
Media
Misinterpretations
Illiteracy

of Religious beliefs

 What

will be the outcomes if the

stigmas and misconceptions
regarding health continue to prevail?

What

can doctors do in order to

remove these stigmas and
misconceptions?