Sex Should Not Be Painful: The Stigma of Vaginismus
Our Summer of Sex is made possible by the sponsorship of Planned Parenthood. With their help, we are able to bring you this thoughtful series delving into the subject of sex and amplify the voices of marginalized people and communities. Cisgender
Destigmatizing Mental Illness Is An Ongoing Fight, But You Can Help
This Mental Health Awareness Month, you can really honor those with mental illness by fighting for them. It's Mental Health Awareness Month, which means that we acknowledge the struggles and triumphs of those living with mental illnesses. We also mark the
How My Kittens Saved My Family’s Mental Health
Filipino culture holds a heavy stigmatization towards mental health — it is either ignored entirely, or minimized and mocked.
“Why, are you mentally ill?” My mom asked, the sarcasm dripping and oozing from her voice. I’d just handed her an article called “Cats Are the Unsung Heroes of Mental Health” to support why I wanted – no, needed to adopt a kitten into our household. “Yes, mom, I am mentally ill,” I bit back, looking her dead straight in the eyes. She knew that I was on medication for my sexual violence-related PTSD and that I’d been seeing a counsellor for over year to treat it. In the version of Filipino culture that my parents raised me on, we dealt with our suffering with laughter and resilience. Naturally, my mom’s ignorance was unsurprising. Filipino culture holds a heavy stigmatization towards mental health — it is either ignored entirely, or minimized and mocked. Anxiety? It’s all in your head. You’re making excuses. Depression? Sleep it off. You’ll get over it. While mental illness in the Philippines is legally protected against discrimination under the Magna Carta for Disabled Persons, the law itself further perpetuates the stigma, using “insanity” as a blanket term to encompass all disorders.Related: CRAZY TALK: SHOULD I GET AN EMOTIONAL SUPPORT ANIMAL FOR MY MENTAL HEALTH?
How Our Use of Language Dehumanizes & Demonizes Mental Illness
Our use of mental illnesses as abstractions or euphemisms in our vernacular to describe violent, frightening, ignorant or morally bad behaviour trivializes and mocks the experience of mental illness. By Roxanne Sukhan “Your lobotomy is showing.” - author and social justice warrior,
How Stigma Punishes Victims — And Helps Perpetrators
by Kristance Harlow Over the holidays, I got into a heated debate at the dinner table over the most effective way to combat racism. This interaction shed light on a fundamental misunderstanding of the difference between destigmatization and normalization. Stigma is a