How could someone with a mental disability work here?

Op Ed Published May 12, 2005 in The Argus, Fremont, CA

"How could someone with a mental disability work here?" I said this without even thinking about it. A speaker from personnel at our Silicon Valley software company was telling us about all of the different protected groups: sex, race. After she said "mental disability," I heard a muffled laugh; after all, what we all prided ourselves on was our intellectual ability - our quick minds that were so logical and good at problem solving. Then I heard my self saying it. Soon, the whole room was laughing.

But then I realized to myself, "Wait! I have been hospitalized for a diagnosable mental health problem myself! What am I saying?" After the meeting, I went back to the office and sat unmoving in my chair, thinking about what I had just done. It had been six years since my breakdown. The stigma of having a mental health problem in our society had been internalized by me and in many ways had paralyzed my life.

There are many examples of this stigma that assault us on nearly a daily basis:

• We've all seen the headline that an ex-mental patient has done something violent. Never mind that studies show that people with mental disorders are no more violent than anyone else in our society.
• We've engaged in the group-think that portrays people with mental disorders as people who have nothing positive to give to our society. Never mind that this is so untrue as to be laughable; some of the world's most well-known and gifted poets, writers, artists and composers have had serious mental problems.
• We've probably witnessed people who have said that to admit you need help is a sign of weakness. Never mind that this kind of characterization cruelly keeps people from getting the help they can get, help that is readily available.
• And, we may have also bought into the idea that once one has a mental disorder, one's life is over because recovery is not possible. Never mind that many people with serious mental disorders can and do lead meaningful and fulfilling lives.

Studies show that mental health stigma leads to discrimination in hiring, housing, in isolation, rejection and in lowering goals for one's life. One of the worst effects of mental health stigma comes when someone with a mental disorder internalizes it and starts to believe it of themselves - like I did.

What can we do about it? We can become educated about stigma so we recognize it and challenge it when it happens. The organization NAMI has a Stigma Alert system (sign up at www.nami.org) that has been very effective at making such challenges. Many local mental health boards have anti-stigma presentations (for example the Anti-Stigma Speaker's Bureau of the Alameda County Mental Health Board). And, for those who have internalized stigma, there is therapy to help overcome negative self concepts.

For me, things began to turn around when I decided I simply wasn't going to live my life every day hating myself, desperately unhappy, and afraid to try anything new. I went into intensive therapy with a wonderful psychiatrist who helped me discover that I too was a precious, valuable human being who could live a rewarding, meaningful life without self-hate and fear. This realization changed me, and made it possible for me to begin to live my life with joy, purpose and meaning.

Rev. Barbara Meyers is now a Unitarian Universalist minister focused on working on mental health issues.

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