TO THE EDITOR:
Bipolar. Crazy. Psycho. Retard. Stigmatizing words like these label people with a mental illness and encourage discrimination.
I bring this up in reference to Tuesday’s column “Strategy of a campus” and its first sentence: “Only time will tell if Chapel Hill’s bipolar weather may soon settle down...”
First, please note this is not an attack on the column’s author. Rather, I am pointing out that we, as a society, tend to use stigmatizing words without meaning to. Saying the word crazy doesn’t mean you’re a bad person. The problem is that words like these are accepted into our daily vocabulary.
Do these words really matter? Yes. Saying phrases like, “The weather is so bipolar,” or, “That test was crazy hard,” devalue and trivialize the experience of having a mental illness. Mental illnesses are chronic conditions just like any physical or intellectual illness or condition.
We’re told that, “Sticks and stones may break bones, but words will never hurt me.” That’s false. Words reinforce negative stereotypes such as the belief that a person with a mental illness is dangerous, violent and incompetent.
Stigma refers to the shame that a person may feel when they fail to meet other people’s standards. Mental illnesses, with treatment, do not prevent people from functioning in daily life and accomplishing life goals.
Additionally, I ask the DTH to consider their language. For example, the AP Stylebook says to use people-first language for reporting on people with disabilities. For example, say “a person with schizophrenia.”
I know that I am especially sensitive to mental health stigma because many of my loved ones have experience with mental illnesses. I also lost my father to suicide. Maybe words like these do not impact everyone, but they can be triggering.
