Societys negative image of the mentally ill
You and I encounter the mentally ill everyday. ... Throughout history we have literally thrown severely mentally ill people onto our streets only to be victimized and made fun of. Most of the mentally ill don’t even understand that they have an illness. ... Throughout history the mentally ill have been looked down on. Is it possible to change this negative view? Through this paper I will try to uncover the course of treatment of the mentally ill and the attempt to correct society’s negative image. Mentally ill people are stigmatized. ... Society’s image of the mentally ill is not surprising. Often shunned, the mentally ill are looked at if they have no feelings or life to them. The negative values associated with mental health certainly persist throughout our culture. ... The 19th century brought new approaches to treatment of the mentally ill. Moral Management was based on the belief that the environment played a vital role in the treatment of the mentally ill. ... Those who served in the Civil War were left with postwar trauma, war wounds that were emotionally and mentally embedded as opposed to physical injures. ... As there were changes in the treatment of the mentally ill were happening, state and federal policies in state institutions changed their policies. There was now an emphasis on protecting the human rights of the mentally ill that had been overlooked in the past. ... The mentally ill represented about a third of the homeless population. We can see the changing and shifting of society’s image of the mentally ill as the century’s pass and new discoveries were made. ... Early treatment techniques for the mentally ill included medications such as calomel and whiskey, restraints such as a padded helmet to prevent patients from hitting their heads against sharp or hard objects, leather muff, hand mitts to prevent patients from scratching, straight jacket to restrain the whole body, restraining chair and seclusion. ... prisoners is mentally ill. ... Prisons are dangerous and can be damaging to the mentally ill. ... Mentally ill prisoners find it difficult to comply with prison rules and end up with higher than average rates of disciplinary infractions. Mentally ill prisoners have been punished for symptoms of their disorders: self-mutilating and attempting suicide because they are “destroying state property”. ... Untrained staff worsen confrontations with mentally ill prisoners, sometimes using excessive force. For those who are seriously mentally ill, prisons can be the worst place to be. This high rate of incarceration of the mentally ill is due to the under funded and disorganized community mental health services. ... If the mentally ill must be incarcerated than they should be placed in facilities that are designed to meet their needs. ... The only way we are going to deal with this problem of the mentally ill is to learn and help rather than just letting them fend for themselves. ... There needs to be a clear distinction between treated and untreated mental illnesses, the failure to do this leads to misunderstanding and fear of the mentally ill. ... We say that we cannot afford to treat the mentally ill in our communities, but we imprison most of the mentally ill across the country at the expense greater than that of appropriate community care. I feel that the negative image that our society places on the mentally ill can be changed. ... I plead with those who look at the mentally ill as if they are no good, to reconsider and take the time to learn about the issue.