Language and Mental Health
2024-01-19
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1In recent years, more and more people have been talking about mental health.
2The pandemic made many people feel isolated or alone.
3The isolation caused some people to struggle more with their mental health.
4Different countries and cultures have different ideas about mental health.
5In the United States, conversations about mental health and mental illness are changing.
6Many well-known people have come forward and shared their mental health journeys through books and social media.
7As ideas about mental health change, so does the language we use to talk about the issue.
8In today's Everyday Grammar, we will talk about the language of mental health.
9Let's start with the question, "What is mental health?"
10"Mental health" contains the adjective "mental" and the noun "health."
11Together, the words become a compound noun meaning the conditions around one's mental and emotional well-being.
12If someone has good mental health, they are in good emotional and mental condition.
13Now let's look at "mental illness." Mental illness is a compound noun with the same adjective "mental," but with the noun "illness."
14If someone has a mental illness, they have a medical condition that affects their mind, personality or emotions.
15The illness harms their mental functioning and can affect their thinking, feelings and behaviors.
16Examples of mental illnesses include depression and anxiety.
17The word "disorder" may also be used with some mental illnesses.
18For example, you may know someone who has an anxiety disorder.
19When we talk about someone's mental health, it is important to use the right words.
20We want to be respectful of the person and understanding of their situation.
21We can use language that is centered on the person rather than their mental health issues.
22One way to do this is to say a person is "living with" their condition.
23The structure for this is:
24Subject + verb live + preposition with + noun form of illness.
25Kurt lives with anxiety.
26Another acceptable and simple way to describe Kurt would be to say "Kurt has anxiety."
27The structure for that is: Subject + verb have + noun form of illness.
28We can use this instead of using an adjective form of their mental health condition, as in "Kurt is an anxious person."
29It is also important to avoid certain words in some settings.
30For example, words like "psycho" and "crazy" may seem informal and acceptable to use, but they can cause harm.
31The word "psycho," when used informally, means an unstable and aggressive person.
32For example: Her ex-boyfriend is such a psycho.
33"Psycho" is related to "psychosis," a mental disorder in which a person has a disconnection from reality.
34Experts say using such words outside of a mental health discussion can lead to stigma.
35Stigma is a set of negative beliefs that a culture has about something.
36Stigma can prevent people from seeking help with their own mental illnesses.
37In today's Everyday Grammar we talk about the best words and language to use when talking about mental health.
38We learned how to use person-centered language to talk about someone with a mental illness.
39And we learned that some words should be avoided to help end the stigma around mental illness.
40I'm Faith Pirlo.
1In recent years, more and more people have been talking about mental health. The pandemic made many people feel isolated or alone. The isolation caused some people to struggle more with their mental health. 2Different countries and cultures have different ideas about mental health. In the United States, conversations about mental health and mental illness are changing. Many well-known people have come forward and shared their mental health journeys through books and social media. 3As ideas about mental health change, so does the language we use to talk about the issue. 4In today's Everyday Grammar, we will talk about the language of mental health. 5Let's start with the question, "What is mental health?" 6What is mental health? 7"Mental health" contains the adjective "mental" and the noun "health." Together, the words become a compound noun meaning the conditions around one's mental and emotional well-being. 8If someone has good mental health, they are in good emotional and mental condition. 9Now let's look at "mental illness." Mental illness is a compound noun with the same adjective "mental," but with the noun "illness." If someone has a mental illness, they have a medical condition that affects their mind, personality or emotions. 10The illness harms their mental functioning and can affect their thinking, feelings and behaviors. Examples of mental illnesses include depression and anxiety. 11The word "disorder" may also be used with some mental illnesses. For example, you may know someone who has an anxiety disorder. 12Person-focused language 13When we talk about someone's mental health, it is important to use the right words. We want to be respectful of the person and understanding of their situation. We can use language that is centered on the person rather than their mental health issues. 14One way to do this is to say a person is "living with" their condition. 15The structure for this is: 16Subject + verb live + preposition with + noun form of illness. 17Kurt lives with anxiety. 18Another acceptable and simple way to describe Kurt would be to say "Kurt has anxiety." 19The structure for that is: Subject + verb have + noun form of illness. 20We can use this instead of using an adjective form of their mental health condition, as in "Kurt is an anxious person." 21Avoid stereotypes 22It is also important to avoid certain words in some settings. For example, words like "psycho" and "crazy" may seem informal and acceptable to use, but they can cause harm. The word "psycho," when used informally, means an unstable and aggressive person. 23For example: Her ex-boyfriend is such a psycho. 24"Psycho" is related to "psychosis," a mental disorder in which a person has a disconnection from reality. Experts say using such words outside of a mental health discussion can lead to stigma. Stigma is a set of negative beliefs that a culture has about something. Stigma can prevent people from seeking help with their own mental illnesses. 25Final thoughts 26In today's Everyday Grammar we talk about the best words and language to use when talking about mental health. We learned how to use person-centered language to talk about someone with a mental illness. And we learned that some words should be avoided to help end the stigma around mental illness. 27I'm Faith Pirlo. 28Faith Pirlo wrote this lesson for VOA Learning English. 29_________________________________________ 30Words in This Story 31isolated - adj. separated from other persons or things; alone; solitary 32conversation - n. an informal talk involving two people or a small group of people 33journey - n. an act or instance of traveling from one place to another 34anxiety - n. an emotional state of being worried or very concerned 35disorder - n. a disease or mental problem 36stigma - n. a set of negative and often unfair beliefs that a society or group of people have about something 37What do you think of this story? We want to hear from you. Write to us at learningenglish@voanews.com or leave us a comment below. 38We want to hear from you. 39Our comment policy is here.