Family
Name
Institutional affiliation
Family
Introduction
Family is an essential part of a person’s life. A family may be big or small but what matters most is having one. A family refers to a group of individuals who are related by ancestry or through blood. Notably, a family serves as the first school where people learn about various issues in life. For instance, people can only get knowledge about their identity and culture from their families. Moreover, families instil a sense of security in people and provide them with an opportunity to flourish by providing a conducive environment. We find the family topic interesting since it affects everyone, regardless of aspects such as age, gender, and race. Various families have different cultures, stigmas, and norms that often cause mental problems or lead to suicide, as discussed in this paper.
Cultures in families
Family is a key determinant of how people develop since within cultures, families forms their own unique cultures. The family culture impacts members of the family because it teaches the individuals how to deal with conflicts, learn rules, communicate, and listen (Diduck et al., 2015). These factors determine how people relate to others in society and family. Furthermore, the unique family culture comprises rules that restrict members to the expected code of conduct and sets particular obligations towards each other. One of the cultures in families that control how people behave is individuality or interdependence.
How individuality or interdependence causes mental problems or suicide
Families vary on how much they embrace or practice the culture of interdependence and individuality. Families that practice individualism emphasize on self-reliance, right to private life and decision making founded on individual wants (Dekker, 2013). On the contrary, families that exercise interdependence culture stresses on the strict loyalty to each other. They exercise familism, a concept that suggests that decisions are only made collectively; thus, they have no room for the private life idea. The culture of interdependence often causes mental health or suicide, particularly when the entire family’s decision offsets one’s choice. Notably, what one considers best for himself may seem bad to others. For example, a youth may be wishing to pursue a specific career in the university which the family may dislike. Once the family’s collective decision offsets his desire, he may become stressed, a situation that may lead to suicide.
On the other hand, individualism causes mental disorders or suicide, particularly when an individual feels like he is alone in times of struggle. Families that exercise the individualism culture assume that it helps in strengthening an individual to cope with future challenges. However, this assumption is at times wrong because when one is facing hard times or is needed to make difficult decisions, help is necessary since the person may become traumatized. Lastly, the unlimited freedom vested on a people often leads to making of poor choices that expose the individuals to mental problems which include stress.
Norms in Families
Family mores or norms entails that rules of behaviour acceptable in various families. The role of norms in a family is to provide predictability and order (Baier, 2016). generally, people desire for approval and a sense of belonging. However, those who do not adhere to norms that regulate family’s behaviour are likely to suffer from disapproval and may be considered outcasts. These norms keep families functioning and may either be direct rules or just familial expectations. When people know what their families expect of them, they comply even when they feel like they want to follow their desires, because they are bound by the desire to belong to a family.
How norms cause mental problems or suicide
There are different types of familial norms, and they dictate various aspects of life, such as how men/women should behave, the types of sexual relationships one may have, and vices which include abortion. Notably, most societies believe that men are strong beings. Therefore, some families require men to show their strength during difficult moments through ways such as not crying. However, they fail to understand that men too have emotions, and they require emotional support in the face of challenges. Lack of emotional support during challenges pushes men to psychological problems like depression which at times lead to suicide.
On the other hand, families have norms that restrict sexual relationships that their children can have. For instance, most families do not support LGBT sexual orientations. However, such families fail to recognize that factors such as being born as a bisexual and transgender influences people from having an abnormal sexual orientation. Therefore, they consider members of the families who have LGBT sexual orientation as outcasts. Discrimination against such individuals is lethal since they become emotionally unstable and may resort to committing suicide.
Norms that bars family members from activities such as abortions are good but may also be lethal. For instance, a woman may not want to keep a pregnancy got through rape. However, such a woman find herself in a dilemma when her family the abortion idea. The conflict of interests between the family and the woman may subject her to stress. When such a woman is caught between stress from the family members and the incidence that led to pregnancy, she may be depressed or contemplating suicide.
Stigma in families
Stigma involves having a disgraceful mark linked to a particular quality, circumstance, or person. Notably, stigma impacts both the people having stigmatizing characteristics and those close to them. Generally, stigma is predominant in families with psychotic disorder patients (Gaebel et al., 2016). The stigmatization of people with mental disorders mostly takes forms such as avoiding, fearing, rejecting, and discriminating against them. Schizophrenic individuals are the most vulnerable to family stigma due to the condition’s distinctive symptoms, perceived dangerousness, and disruptive behaviour. Stigmatization of individuals with such disorders has severe impacts such as the denial of signs and symptoms, disruption of social relationships, and delays in taking the individual to the hospital for treatment. Lastly, when stigmatized people feel unwanted, they resort to suicide as a way of escaping from their problems.
History of family stigma and recommended solutions
Stigmatization of people with mental disorders has existed for centuries, and the word “stigma” emerged in ancient Greece (Rössler, 2016). For centuries, people with mental disorders such as schizophrenia mistreated like criminals and slaves. For example, during the middle ages, people perceived mental illness as God’s punishment. Therefore, they assumed that mentally disturbed people were possessed with demons; thus, they burned or chained them in madhouses. However, discrimination and stigmatization reached its peak during the reign of Nazi in Germany where the regime killed and sterilized thousands of mentally sick people.
Some of the ways of dealing with the stigma that psychologists propose include joining the mental health support group, speaking out against stigma, and seeking help at school (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2017). Joining a mental health support group enables a person to understand that there are others like him; thus, no longer feels lonely. On the other hand, speaking out against stigma enables the patients, and family members develop self-esteem in the face of stigmatization. Lastly, parents of children with mental problems should consult teachers on programs that can help them.
Conclusion
Overall, a family involves people who are connected through blood or have a common ancestry. Additionally, a culture of individualism may lead to suicide or mental problems when a person is facing problems alone. Furthermore, family norms that hinder one’s freedom of choosing the sexual relationship of choice cause stress. Lastly, family stigma is a common challenge to people with mental disorders and can be solved through measures such as joining a mental health support group.
References
Baier, M. (2016). Social and legal norms: Towards a socio-legal understanding of Normativity. Routledge.
Dekker, R. M. (2013). Family, culture and society in the diary of Constantijn huygens Jr, Secretary to Stadholder-King William of orange. BRILL.
Diduck, A., Peleg, N., & Reece, H. (2015). Law in Society: Reflections on children, family, culture and philosophy: Essays in Honour of Michael Freeman. BRILL.
Gaebel, W., Rössler, W., & Sartorius, N. (2016). The stigma of mental illness – End of the story? Springer.
Mayo Clinic Staff. (2017, May 24). Mental health: Overcoming the stigma of mental illness. Mayo Clinic. Retrieved May 24, 2020, from https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/mental-illness/in-depth/mental-health/art-20046477
Rössler, W. (2016). The stigma of mental disorders. EMBO reports, 17(9), 1250-1253. https://doi.org/10.15252/embr.201643041
Family
Name
Institutional affiliation
Family
Introduction
Family is an essential part of a person’s life. A family may be big or small but what matters most is having one. A family refers to a group of individuals who are related by ancestry or through blood. Notably, a family serves as the first school where people learn about various issues in life. For instance, people can only get knowledge about their identity and culture from their families. Moreover, families instil a sense of security in people and provide them with an opportunity to flourish by providing a conducive environment. We find the family topic interesting since it affects everyone, regardless of aspects such as age, gender, and race. Various families have different cultures, stigmas, and norms that often cause mental problems or lead to suicide, as discussed in this paper.
Cultures in families
Family is a key determinant of how people develop since within cultures, families forms their own unique cultures. The family culture impacts members of the family because it teaches the individuals how to deal with conflicts, learn rules, communicate, and listen (Diduck et al., 2015). These factors determine how people relate to others in society and family. Furthermore, the unique family culture comprises rules that restrict members to the expected code of conduct and sets particular obligations towards each other. One of the cultures in families that control how people behave is individuality or interdependence.
How individuality or interdependence causes mental problems or suicide
Families vary on how much they embrace or practice the culture of interdependence and individuality. Families that practice individualism emphasize on self-reliance, right to private life and decision making founded on individual wants (Dekker, 2013). On the contrary, families that exercise interdependence culture stresses on the strict loyalty to each other. They exercise familism, a concept that suggests that decisions are only made collectively; thus, they have no room for the private life idea. The culture of interdependence often causes mental health or suicide, particularly when the entire family’s decision offsets one’s choice. Notably, what one considers best for himself may seem bad to others. For example, a youth may be wishing to pursue a specific career in the university which the family may dislike. Once the family’s collective decision offsets his desire, he may become stressed, a situation that may lead to suicide.
On the other hand, individualism causes mental disorders or suicide, particularly when an individual feels like he is alone in times of struggle. Families that exercise the individualism culture assume that it helps in strengthening an individual to cope with future challenges. However, this assumption is at times wrong because when one is facing hard times or is needed to make difficult decisions, help is necessary since the person may become traumatized. Lastly, the unlimited freedom vested on a people often leads to making of poor choices that expose the individuals to mental problems which include stress.
Norms in Families
Family mores or norms entails that rules of behaviour acceptable in various families. The role of norms in a family is to provide predictability and order (Baier, 2016). generally, people desire for approval and a sense of belonging. However, those who do not adhere to norms that regulate family’s behaviour are likely to suffer from disapproval and may be considered outcasts. These norms keep families functioning and may either be direct rules or just familial expectations. When people know what their families expect of them, they comply even when they feel like they want to follow their desires, because they are bound by the desire to belong to a family.
How norms cause mental problems or suicide
There are different types of familial norms, and they dictate various aspects of life, such as how men/women should behave, the types of sexual relationships one may have, and vices which include abortion. Notably, most societies believe that men are strong beings. Therefore, some families require men to show their strength during difficult moments through ways such as not crying. However, they fail to understand that men too have emotions, and they require emotional support in the face of challenges. Lack of emotional support during challenges pushes men to psychological problems like depression which at times lead to suicide.
On the other hand, families have norms that restrict sexual relationships that their children can have. For instance, most families do not support LGBT sexual orientations. However, such families fail to recognize that factors such as being born as a bisexual and transgender influences people from having an abnormal sexual orientation. Therefore, they consider members of the families who have LGBT sexual orientation as outcasts. Discrimination against such individuals is lethal since they become emotionally unstable and may resort to committing suicide.
Norms that bars family members from activities such as abortions are good but may also be lethal. For instance, a woman may not want to keep a pregnancy got through rape. However, such a woman find herself in a dilemma when her family the abortion idea. The conflict of interests between the family and the woman may subject her to stress. When such a woman is caught between stress from the family members and the incidence that led to pregnancy, she may be depressed or contemplating suicide.
Stigma in families
Stigma involves having a disgraceful mark linked to a particular quality, circumstance, or person. Notably, stigma impacts both the people having stigmatizing characteristics and those close to them. Generally, stigma is predominant in families with psychotic disorder patients (Gaebel et al., 2016). The stigmatization of people with mental disorders mostly takes forms such as avoiding, fearing, rejecting, and discriminating against them. Schizophrenic individuals are the most vulnerable to family stigma due to the condition’s distinctive symptoms, perceived dangerousness, and disruptive behaviour. Stigmatization of individuals with such disorders has severe impacts such as the denial of signs and symptoms, disruption of social relationships, and delays in taking the individual to the hospital for treatment. Lastly, when stigmatized people feel unwanted, they resort to suicide as a way of escaping from their problems.
History of family stigma and recommended solutions
Stigmatization of people with mental disorders has existed for centuries, and the word “stigma” emerged in ancient Greece (Rössler, 2016). For centuries, people with mental disorders such as schizophrenia mistreated like criminals and slaves. For example, during the middle ages, people perceived mental illness as God’s punishment. Therefore, they assumed that mentally disturbed people were possessed with demons; thus, they burned or chained them in madhouses. However, discrimination and stigmatization reached its peak during the reign of Nazi in Germany where the regime killed and sterilized thousands of mentally sick people.
Some of the ways of dealing with the stigma that psychologists propose include joining the mental health support group, speaking out against stigma, and seeking help at school (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2017). Joining a mental health support group enables a person to understand that there are others like him; thus, no longer feels lonely. On the other hand, speaking out against stigma enables the patients, and family members develop self-esteem in the face of stigmatization. Lastly, parents of children with mental problems should consult teachers on programs that can help them.
Conclusion
Overall, a family involves people who are connected through blood or have a common ancestry. Additionally, a culture of individualism may lead to suicide or mental problems when a person is facing problems alone. Furthermore, family norms that hinder one’s freedom of choosing the sexual relationship of choice cause stress. Lastly, family stigma is a common challenge to people with mental disorders and can be solved through measures such as joining a mental health support group.
References
Baier, M. (2016). Social and legal norms: Towards a socio-legal understanding of Normativity. Routledge.
Dekker, R. M. (2013). Family, culture and society in the diary of Constantijn huygens Jr, Secretary to Stadholder-King William of orange. BRILL.
Diduck, A., Peleg, N., & Reece, H. (2015). Law in Society: Reflections on children, family, culture and philosophy: Essays in Honour of Michael Freeman. BRILL.
Gaebel, W., Rössler, W., & Sartorius, N. (2016). The stigma of mental illness – End of the story? Springer.
Mayo Clinic Staff. (2017, May 24). Mental health: Overcoming the stigma of mental illness. Mayo Clinic. Retrieved May 24, 2020, from https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/mental-illness/in-depth/mental-health/art-20046477
Rössler, W. (2016). The stigma of mental disorders. EMBO reports, 17(9), 1250-1253. https://doi.org/10.15252/embr.201643041