A large number of respondents said they thought some mental illnesses were just being used as an excuse to behave badly. Many also would not talk about a family member with a mental illness while they would readily say something if that relative had cancer or diabetes. And a majority said they'd avoid hiring a professional if they knew they'd had a mental illness. Funny, that. One in five Canadians will deal with mental illness in their lifetime so, you're undoubtedly already working with or hiring someone already.
I think there are two main problems with the bulk of the brains of our people. First, overall, people generally suffer from a lack of self-confidence. They are held back by self-talk that tells them they're not good enough or can't accomplish something. It's so ubiquitous and endless that they don't even realize that it's not the truth and that they can change the message on this endless loop. Second, there is something inherent in us that disbelieves something unless we've experienced it. Until we get older and have many more experiences to draw from, our empathy well runneth dry for others in many cases. A young person who has lost a parent to illness will undoubtedly be more sympathetic to someone in a similar situation. You don't - and maybe you can't - truly get it unless you've been there.
There are other issues with the way mental illness is misunderstood. Not all mentally ill people are super sick like, say, the crazed lunatic who stabbed Tim McLean on that Greyhound bus. There are all sorts of varying degrees and types of mental illness just like there are different types and severities of fractures, bruises and sprains. Not all mentally ill people are weak - that's another myth. Many people have a bout of an illness, like depression, and recover and never suffer again. In that way, it can be very much like a nasty flu. I've also often thought that depression should have another name, because everybody gets depressed from time to time over life events. But clinical depression is altogether different.
I suppose that if people who are suffering from a mental illness wore some sort of a cast or bandage they would get more understanding. The brain has always puzzled and fascinated us and the thought of losing control of it is truly terrifying.
Maybe that's part of it too; those who are afraid, choose not to acknowledge the mental illness of another because that would make it real and a potential threat to them as well.