Mental health myths remain in spite of advances

The treatment of emotional disorders has been one of the fastest changing facets of health care during the past 20 years. Notable advances include:

• Breakthroughs in psychopharmacology (the use of medication for emotional disorders);
• New trends in psychotherapy;
• Greater awareness on the part of the layman.

The dark ages of ignorance and superstition where people with emotional problems were locked up and even tortured are not found in today’s society. Modern treatment techniques have at their core a warmth, an understanding and acceptance needed to help individuals who find it difficult to cope in this rapidly changing world.

Most insurance companies now recognize the necessity for covering the treatment of emotional disorders, and many businesses are establishing Employee Assistance Programs should emotional problems arise.

Many community organizations are welcoming and encouraging programs by mental health professionals. Besides increasing mental health awareness, they instruct people on ways to maintain a healthier set of emotional responses, thus lessening the chance or need for future professional consultation.

Despite the rapid strides made in mental health treatment, several myths about mental and emotional illness still exist and should be dispelled.

• Myth No. 1: Emotional problems are a sign of weakness, bad parenting, lack of religious convictions, etc. Most emotional problems are, in fact, the result of a combination of causes that are often very compels. Usually they develop over a period of months, or even years.
• Another myth is that once a person has developed emotional problems he will never be free from these problems. The truth is that the goal of most mental health professionals is to develop self-sufficiency and give back to the individual the confidence to cope with the stresses and pressures of life. This is not usually accomplished overnight, and some individuals, because of the severity of their problems, need processional help for a longer period of time.
• A two-fold myth concerns doctors and charges. The belief is that professional counseling and therapy for emotional problems are far more expensive than other forms of health care, and that any kind of doctor can perform this service.

The important thing to remember in dispelling this myth is that mental health professional are trained specialists, as are other health care professionals such as dentists, specialists for eye diseases, specialists in family medicine, etc. The specific therapies needed for the treatment of emotional disorders are learned in specialized training programs in psychiatry, psychology, and other mental health training fields. The cost per unit of time is no more expensive than other forms of health care treatment, and in many cases far less expensive.

• Psychiatric hospitals are “snake pits.” This myth conveys the idea that people are locked up and the key is thrown away, and that psychiatric hospitals are the last resort when everything else has failed. Waco is fortunate to have two of the most modern facilities in the United States, with an environment that is anything but depressing, ominous or foreboding. The programs at these hospitals, the fees charged and the physical facilities are comparable and give the citizens of Central Texas a wide choice in selecting the kind of treatment best suited for them.

Finally, we can remember that two of the chief ingredients needed to help an emotionally disturbed person are:

1. Understanding that answers are available for them;
2. Working toward removing all traces of any remaining stigma.

If we can accomplish this, greater future strides and be expected and better mental health maintained for all.

Harold H. LeCrone, Jr., Ph.D. Copyright 1984