Confronting Stigma

TED Radio Hour's "Confronting Stigma" with Guy Roz covers four different topics, each of which faces a crippling stigma (or mark of shame). Drug addiction and mental health were the two that I felt the most connected to.

I'm sure it comes as no surprise to anyone that there is a stigma surrounding drug addiction. We're told from a very young age that drugs are bad. So that must mean that people who do them are bad too, right? This is the idea that journalist Johann Hari confronts.

Another example of someone working hard to destigmatize addiction is Dax Shepard. On his podcast, Armchair Expert, he discusses countless topics with each of his guests, but one constant throughout every episode is the topic of addiction. Dax frequently mentions his past struggles with drug and alcohol addiction, as well as how much he has learned and grown from Alcoholics Anonymous and sobriety.  In fact, his wife Kristen Bell recently shared an Instagram post in which she celebrated his 14th year of sobriety. Like Kristen, I commend Dax's openness and willingness to share his story so candidly with the world.

"The opposite of addiction isn't sobriety. The opposite of addiciton is connection."

To begin his argument, Hari gives the example of Portugal nearly 20 years ago. With one of the largest drug populations in all of Europe, they decided to decriminalize all drugs and put the money that would have been used to combat the "war on drugs" into reconnecting users with society. They didn't get rid of rehab and therapy, but they focused their efforts primarily on creating jobs for addicts. Since they have shifted their focus to giving addicts purpose, drug addiction in Portugal is down 50%. 

Johann Hari leaves us with this thought:  "Policies based on stigma and shame kill people. They are deadly. Policies based on love and compassion work much better. For a hundred years now, we have been singing war songs about people with addiction problems. We should've been singing them love songs all along."

Check out his book Lost Connections on Amazon:

Lost Connections: Uncovering the Real Causes of Depression รข€“ and the Unexpected Solutions by [Hari, Johann]  


Next, Nikki Webber Allen talks about the stigma around mental health and how it is even more of an issue for people of color. She explains that historical oppression has led to a current need to show strength over all else. She goes on to state that despite the fact that black Americans have a 20% greater risk of developing a mental disorder, they seek mental health services about half as often as white Americans. After losing her nephew to suicide, she has determined not to let shame and stigma keep her silent. Today, she works to bring awareness to this issue.

"Being strong is killing us. Having feelings isn't a sign of weakness." 

Another woman who has recently started advocating for awareness and is working to break the stigma surrounding mental illness is Ban.do founder Jen Gotch. She has a podcast entitled Jen Gotch is OK... Sometimes in which she covers topics ranging from anxiety to social media addiction to bipolar disorder. Another way Jen is working to break the stigma is by selling necklaces through her business, which she hopes will help open up a dialogue on this topic that was once seen as taboo. I have learned a great deal from listening to her stories, and think we can all learn through compassion and understanding.

The podcast also goes on to discuss the stigma surrounding HIV and sex work.

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