by GRAYCE MCCORMICK
Creighton Digital Storytellers

Stigmas surrounding mental illness harken back to decades ago.  Society could probably reach the consensus that they’ve lessened over time, and if nothing else, have certainly changed drastically.

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Nonetheless, each individual has their own unique experiences with stigmas, and each life chapter results in a new and different struggle with them.

Macy Damewood and Teresa Spagna, both College of Arts and Sciences juniors at Creighton, both agree that the stigmas have become less prevalent over time, simply due to the increase in conversation.

Spagna said that she believes it would have been much worse years ago.

“You would be required to hide [mental illness], but now it’s being seen as something worth fighting and being open about,” Spagna said.  “People want to help you rather than hide it for you.”

She also believes healthcare professionals are giving mental illness a lot closer of a look than in previous years.

“Doctors would discredit people for coming to the doctor at all for thinking they have a mental issue. But now, it’s worth the time and they actually give it the time of day.”

In terms of her personal journey with mental illness, Spagna said that opening up about it has been the biggest turning point in dealing with the stigmas she felt.

“There was one side of going to people who I knew didn’t struggle with it, but I didn’t think they would understand it, so I didn’t see it as worth it,” she said.  “But on the other side, I also didn’t want to go to people who I knew struggled with it because I didn’t want to feel like mine wasn’t enough because it wasn’t at an astronomical level.”

Spagna said that the fundamental concept that changed over time was the fact that she felt that people actually wanted to help.

“It’s the idea of finding comfort in people who don’t struggle with it normally still wanting to be there,” she said.  “Awareness is becoming something more celebrated rather than something we shouldn’t talk about. With society changing and accepting every type of person, it’s really helped with the struggle because it makes you want to be better and work toward being stronger.”

As a pre-med student, Damewood believes that the dialogue regarding mental illness in healthcare has transformed.

“I think it’s finally being regarded as an actual health issue,” Damewood said.  “It’s more on par with physical health than it used to be.”

Damewood also referenced the widespread availability of resources and the “Semi Colon Movement” as key signs that stigmas are being addressed.

“It goes back to the idea that it’s a thing now. It’s acknowledged as a real thing.”

Damewood said that early on in her journey with mental illness, she felt like she closed herself off and tended to shut others out, so when conversation became more acceptable, it lifted a heavy weight off of her.

“The more it’s talked about, the less atypical it starts to feel,” she said.  “When I first opened up to my family about it, I was nervous because it’s not exactly something you bring up at your family Thanksgiving. But once I did, I found out just how many people in my family experienced the same things, and that made it so much easier.”

The Foundations Recovery Network unpacks the history of mental illness from the 1800s to now, and how healthcare professionals began studying it using psychological methods as opposed to biological studies.

“Community agencies have worked for years to provide people with the help they need to manage their conditions without entering a facility for life,” the study said.  “Social workers, mental health counselors and more have all been involved in this movement, and while it’s safe to say that some communities provide help that’s superior to the level of assistance seen in other communities, it’s clear that people have options for treatment today through community resources that just didn’t exist a decade or so ago.”