How great is the stigma surrounding mental illness in our society?
There’s a tremendous stigma, even in our language. Kids are called crazy, loony, bad. We use very negative words, rather than identifying illnesses. There still are a lot of negative stereotypes to contend with. Parents and professionals have to know that child mental illnesses are real, they’re common and they’re treatable. When I was involved in putting together the exhibit, wherever I went there was always someone who said, You don’t want to put a diagnosis with the child, you don’t want to label artwork, that would be stigmatizing. That was the point. If these families and kids and professionals said it was okay, it wasn’t for the public to say, “Don’t do it.” How do you change people’s attitudes and understandings about anxiety, depression, learning disorders and manic-depressive illness if you don’t call them by name? He’s not crazy, he has ADHD. They’re regular kids, they have these problems, and some are more difficult to deal with than others. What are some of the obstacles th
