Stigma surrounding mental health is not consistent globally. People's views on mental illness are greatly affected by their cultural values and beliefs. In many Western countries, people are more open about and accepting of common problems like depression. On the other hand, research cited by Psychology Today shows that mental illness is still seen as very shameful or taboo in some parts of Asia and India. Some Chinese or Indian families, for instance, might be worried that a

Movies and news have long sensationalized schizophrenia and psychosis, often linking them to violence. This makes people think less of the public. A 30-year study found that social distance and fear of people with schizophrenia have actually gone up, in part because the media focuses on the most extreme cases. For instance, movies often show people "losing their mind" or doing bad things when they are having psychotic episodes. These kinds of depictions support the false idea

Stigma that you keep to yourself and rebuilding your identity When stigma sets in, it often turns into self-stigma, which means that people start to believe bad things about themselves. Psychology Today says that this "internalized" stigma makes people who are sick think they don't deserve care. They might start to doubt that they can ever get better or "be normal" again, which can really slow down the healing process. A meta-analysis on severe mental illness revealed that in