Please note: you can not tell if someone has a disorder by looking at them. This includes depression. While there are warning signs to spot if a loved one is struggling with depression, every person presents symptoms differently. That also means that some people hide their struggles better than others. That does not mean their problems are any easier to deal with. Please be kind and patient with people. You truly never know what someone's going through.
Most Common Myths About Mental Disorders
Down below are some of the most stigmatized disorders. Here, you will find the most common myths that are still spread around to this day despite being disproven by science and psychology many times throughout the decades. You will also find sketches/images by people with these disorders that better represent what goes on psychologically.
Bipolar Disorder
-It’s just mood swings or mood swings indicate you have Bipolar
-It’s easy to tell if someone has Bipolar
-It’s a rare illness/ there’s only one type of Bipolar
-Mania is a happy and fun part of Bipolar
-Medication is the only treatment
-Patients with the disorder are violent and unpredictable
-Sufferers cannot work/function like normal members of society
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
-Only war veterans can get PTSD
-People suffer from PTSD immediately after they are exposed to a traumatic event.
-Victims who suffer from the disorder are mentally unstable and violent.
-Everyone who experiences a traumatic event will have PTSD.
-Individuals with PTSD experiences the same symptoms
-PTSD just goes away over time
-It’s an untreatable disorder
-Having PTSD is a sign of weakness
-People with PTSD just need to move on
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
-ADHD isn’t a real medical disorder
-Adults can’t be diagnosed with the disorder
-ADHD just means you can't sit still
-Only boys can have ADHD
-People with ADHD just need to try harder
-All kids with ADHD are hyperactive and vice versa
-People with ADHD can never focus
-Kids with ADHD will outgrow it
-ADHD is a result of bad parenting
Borderline Personality Disorder
-BPD stands for Bipolar Disorder. (Bipolar is one word and is not abbreviated in the field of psychology)
-BPD can’t be treated
-It isn’t a real/valid disorder
-BPD is caused by childhood trauma
-People with BPD are manipulative or attention seekers
-Sufferers are incapable of empathy or love
-BPD patients are dangerous
-People with a personality disorder have a flawed personality
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Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
-We all have a little OCD
-It’s a quirky personality trait
-People with OCD are neat or clean-freaks
-You can just stop compulsions/rituals
-OCD is caused by stress
-The illness is untreatable
-People with OCD are crazy
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Generalized Anxiety Disorder
-People with GAD blow everything out of proportion or over-exaggerate
-It isn’t that bad of a disorder to have
-It’s obvious when someone has GAD
-Generalized anxiety disorder has no physical symptoms
-People with GAD don’t enjoy being around people or socializing
-Everyone has anxiety