Words Matter
One of the first steps to stopping stigma is to address the most common way we perpetuate it: the way we talk about it. Words often reflect what we think about a topic and describe our worldview, even if we are unaware of the impact of our language. For example, every day, we describe traffic as “insane,” we say our neighbor is a “psycho” or we tell our friends that the ending of a TV show was “totally nuts.” We’re not trying to offend anyone, but we’re helping to make these words intimidating and scary. This section provides some ideas about how to change your language so you can help eliminate stigma around mental illness.
Numerous organizations have developed preferred language to be used when referring to mental illness or people who have a mental illness.
USE THIS LANGUAGE | INSTEAD OF THIS LANGUAGE |
| She is a person with schizophrenia | She is schizophrenic |
| He was diagnosed with bipolar disorder | He was mentally ill |
| They have a mental illness/ They are experiencing, or being treated for, or has a diagnosis of, or a history of, mental illness | They suffer from, is a victim of, or afflicted by a mental illness |
| She has a substance use disorder/experiencing alcohol/drug problem | She is a drug abuser/addict/junkie |
| She attempted suicide | She had an unsuccessful suicide |
| He died by suicide | He committed suicide/He had a successful suicide |
| Any of the phrases above about referring to someone experiencing a mental illness. | Words like psycho, schizo, wacko, unhinged, maniac, or mad |
| This is absurd or ridiculous | This is crazy or nuts |
| They were discharged from the hospital | They were released from the hospital |
| Antidepressants, medication, prescription drugs | Happy pills |
There are other common mistakes that reinforce a negative perception of people with a mental illness or contribute to confusion about what mental illness is.
- Schizophrenic or bipolar should not be used to mean “two minds” or “split personality”
- Somebody who is angry is not psychotic
- A person who is down or unhappy is not the same as someone experiencing clinical depression