ORIGINS

No matter what is going on in the world someone will always have something negative, degrading and even untrue about someone else with their lifestyle or even something about them. Mental health has been around forever but it was not always defined as mental health. Ingrid G. Farreras, a psychology professor, did extensive background research on mental health and the start of myths and stigma behind it. People used to think that a mental illness was evil, the devils work or even a curse by the Greek gods.

As time went on, discoveries were made and mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety and  schizophrenia were finally given the name of mental health conditions. Once mental health conditions were finally given names society began to make myths and stigmas about specific mental health conditions targeting specific illnesses. Myths and stigma on mental health started to break out in 1996. Since the myths and stigma on mental health became so bad, the World Psychiatric Association decided that they wanted to work with the world on developing a program that would inform people about the reality of mental health instead of people making up something that could not be true. The World Psychiatric Association decided to name this program “Open the Doors.” The program is set in place to help educate people on the reality of mental health and help people understand that the stigmas that are said to those with mental health is very effective and that stigma is something we need to put an end to when it comes to mental health.

Written by: Jordan Clouthier