Title: Why We Don't Take Mental Disorders Seriously - Soapboxie
Headings: Why We Don't Take Mental Disorders Seriously
Why We Don't Take Mental Disorders Seriously
Simulated Schizophrenia
Reasons Mental Illnesses Aren't Taken Seriously
Many Americans Know Little about Mental Illnesses
Genetics and Mental Disorders
© 2014 LT Wright
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Content: In many cases, their illness is worsened by drug use or caused by it. Members of the US military undergo lots of stresses including combat and long separations from their families but even here diagnosis rates are about 25%. Obviously, rates of diagnosis would be lower among the general population. So, no, not everyone who walks into a psychologist's office is diagnosed with a mental disorder. Mental illness is often seen as an excuse for bad behavior. We want individuals to be held accountable when they do something wrong, so we're reluctant to give them justifications for their actions. When someone engages in abhorrent behavior, we get angry and want them to pay. We want to believe they must have known what they did was wrong. We find it hard to accept that there are people who really are not in control of their behavior. It goes against the idea of free will, an important concept in major religions, and the basis for our justice systems.