Societal stigma hampers mental patients’ recovery

A stigmatized society reacts differently to patients with mental illness, resulting to inhibited progress of individuals under treatment and continued imbalances.

Expert Laura L. Post of the Marianas Psychiatric Services disclosed a mental illness affects up to more than 75 percent of so-called normal people in the population at some point in their lives.

This illness can be attributed to prolonged grief, acute stress, fears and abuse disorders related to alcohol and drugs.

Another level of mental illness falls under the form of major depression or bipolar disease which result to unstable, ravaged imbalances in brain chemicals beyond the individual’s control.

“Schizophrenic individuals don’t experience brief, limited episodes of symptoms with OK times in between, they live all the time with unhappy ideas,” said Dr. Post.

Further, schizophrenics entertain destructive impulses, and can easily be overwhelmed with everyday tasks and responsibilities, that society reacts to them differently.

Individuals with mental illness are sometimes shunned, disrespected, treated differently and sometimes all together ostracized from any social functions.

“Stigma is a terrible enemy, people avoided patients. We have to fight stigma, and combat some of the worst illness that destroy minds and hope,” said the doctor.

She added that stigma at-large is the single greatest factor that derails the progress of seriously mentally ill adults and children with Serious Emotional Disturbance.

On April 7, the World Health Organization will celebrate the Mental Health Day with focus on discussions on suicide, mental illness and alcoholism.

The Department of Public Health earlier sounded the alarm on the increasing number of suicide cases in Northern Marianas, as cases soared to more than 35 percent over the past seven years, majority of such cases involve Chamorro males.

Despite the islands’ small population, the increasing number has stirred alarm among health officials who said suicide has become more of an unseen problem in the community.

Cases submitted to the Department of Psychiatry of the Commonwealth Health Center revealed that the victims are predominantly male, between ages of 15 and 24.

Suicide cases among young people in the Commonwealth rose from 20 percent for every 100,000 individuals in 1992 to 35 percent for every 100,000 people. These incidents primarily involve male Micronesians, particularly Chamorros.

According to psychiatry department chair Anthony A. Bottone, the rates of suicides are astronomically high and they are 325 and 303 cases per 100,000 of Micronesian males who are in the 15-19 and 20-24 age groups.

A rate of over 20 per 100,000 is regarded unusually high especially in a modestly-populated area like the CNMI.

The estimates were made by age, gender, and ethnic groups according to prior census date and commerce department projections of population growth, said Mr. Bottone.

The expert warned the rates might increase once the census 2000 results are released.

He said the US government began to include the CNMI in annual statistics only in 1998 but reports did not calculate suicide rates because of the Commonwealth’s population. The absence of the complete figure hides the problem.

The expert further assessed that failure of authorities to report suicide incidents have jeopardized the ability of the Commonwealth Health Center to counsel family and friends of the suicide victim.