Editorial: The centrifugal tendencies of the stigma attached to mental illness || FREE PAPER ||

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Author: Norman Sartorius

Published Date May 2006 Volume 2006:2(1) Pages 1 - 2

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.2147/NDT.S

Norman Sartorius

University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland

The centrifugal tendencies of the stigma attached to mental illness

Mental illness stigmatises those who have it. The stigma then has a variety of consequences, nowadays all negative in most countries. In previous times and still today in some settings, symptoms of mental illness, for example hallucinations, were perceived as a privilege, a sign of being in touch with deities. This is, however, today rare. In most countries of the world the stigma of mental illness represents a terrible burden that the person with a mental illness has to carry, in addition to all other difficulties that a severe illness might create.