Mental Health Monday: Addressing the stigma

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – Addressing mental health can be uncomfortable because of looming stigmas, but it is important.

According to Mental Health America, more than half of adults with a mental illness do not receive treatment.

This could be because of the stigma against mental health, especially for men and older age groups.

"Men get mixed messages in our culture. It's really not fair. We make fun of men for crying if something difficult happened, but then often in romantic relationships, women are guilting them for not being sensitive enough. That's a really mixed message though," Licensed Clinical Worker Stefanie Westover said.

With older people the, "Work ethic and 'get up and pull yourself up by your bootstraps' was a lot more prevalent 50 years ago... There's a lot of this idea that if you were strong enough, you wouldn't have a mental health issue," Westover said.

But she said the stigma is improving and there are many different resources out there. Now more than ever it is okay to ask for help.

"We demand so much of our brains. Right now, we are asked to do so much and our brains, we're just not wired for that much demand," She said.

She encourages people to take steps of acceptance and be sincere whether you or someone you know thinks they may struggle with mental health.

If you or someone you know is in a mental health crisis, call the national hotline at 988 or visit the emergency room.