Misperceptions about Mental Illness

 

 

 

C    A person who has schizophrenia has a “split personality,” or is undecided between two options.

      False. Neither is true.  “Split personality” is actually a rare condition known as 

      multiple personality disorder.  It is a dissociative disorder and is usually the result of

      severe childhood trauma or abuse.  Schizophrenia is a biologically based disorder.

C    “Poor parenting” causes mental illness.

False.  Although this is absolutely false, this misperception has caused great pain to    countless parents, often preventing them from seeking effective treatment for their loved one.

C    Mental Illness is a form of mental retardation.

False.  Intelligence among those who have a mental illness is as equally distributed as it is among those who do not have a mental illness.

C    Stress causes mental illness.

False.  Although stress may exacerbate the symptoms of mental illness, or trigger the onset of an episode, the actual causes of major mental illness appear to be biological.

C    Mental illness is inherited.

Yes and no.  This is partially true.  It seems that some individuals do inherit a predisposition for a specific mental illness, and some forms of mental illness, such as bipolar disorder, do tend to run in families more than do others.  However, the onset of mental illness is much more complicated than can be accounted for by genetics alone.

C    Mental illness is contagious.

False.  Absolutely untrue.  You will not “catch” a mental illness by being around someone who has one.  However, one theory about the causes of some forms of mental illness does implicate an as yet unknown virus that may affect a fetus in utero.

C    People who have a mental illness are dangerous.

False.  News reports and movies to the contrary, people who have a mental illness and are treated are no more violent than anyone else is.  In fact, they are much more often the victims of violence than are those who do not have a mental illness. Sadly, 30-75% of individuals who have a mental illness, abuse drugs and/or alcohol, and are not receiving integrated substance abuse and mental health treatment, may be prone to violence.  Violent behavior can result when the individual with a mental illness does not take prescribed medication, and abuses drugs and/or alcohol.