“The improvement of the mental patient goes through combating stigma that the disease causes”.

-The fear becomes phobia when exposing to these situations, create who afflicted a clinically significant anxiety and what usually lead to avoidance behaviors

-the acceptance of the mentally ill in the fight against stigmatization is the necessary first step to recover

-fear and phobias to humans is also born of their attacks and as “transmitter of his, including the sexually transmitted diseases, causing difficulties in relationship between human beings

Vitoria-Gazteiz, March 2012.- El Dr. Gonzalo Paz, medical specialist in Psychiatry in Lugo, has ensured that the social acceptance of the mentally ill is vital to his recovery, during the workshop held last Thursday in the 20th year of update in psychiatry entitled””With regard to environmental Psychiatry”.

During his speech, the expert has analysed some mental disorders from the environmental perspective, and to what extent affect the atmospheric, climatological, geographical factors and Park them in specific phobias of environmental. The impact of the environment on the human mental health began to have relevance when Dr. M. Sorre proposed a geographic survey specific of each area, which can study each of the phobias in which the environment is a key factor in 1955, to talk about medical geography, ”, says Dr. Paz.

Galician psychiatrist believes that it should ideally do some cartographies of phobias according to the areas in which lives the population, unlike, for example, the mountainous coastal. The phobias are marked by the geographic areas in which we live, with a higher incidence of phobias to the cliffs in areas, mountainous, and instead a greater fear of storms in the coastal ”, assures Dr. Paz. The fear that it leads to phobias is based, according to the expert, the high level of accidents involving those realities that causes them, and so has been transmitted in the common imagination of the area.

In this sense, Lugo psychiatrist examined first of all phobias of situational type, influenced by artificial environments, such as cars, bridges or tunnels. On the other hand, explained phobias of animal type, originated by the coexistence with other living beings. Animals fear them both by their attacks, as usually transmitters of diseases ”, assures Dr. Paz. According to the expert, these phobias derive widespread fear to all living beings, including humans. Fear of humans was also born as a transmitter of his, including the sexually transmitted diseases, causing difficulties in relationship between human beings and their attacks ”, assures the doctor Lugo. The psychological factor finally derived to the fear of the spread of this epidemic, so it not only stays in physical itself, if not illness that comes with it a fear of the social relationship ” concludes the psychiatrist.

Estigmatizados

Phobias affecting social relationships are determined by the stigmatization of those who suffer from a disease or evil that wants to avoid. In this sense, the psychiatrist explained as over the centuries there has been epidemic diseases that can leave visible bodily signals that you are suffering them (plague) or that they cause severe physical deformities (leprosy), and historically they have been subjected to marginalization and containment in infirmaries.

A logical fear of exposure to specific feared objects or situations can be ”, assures Dr. Paz. However, the expert says that the fear becomes phobia when exposing to these situations, create who afflicted a clinically significant anxiety and what usually give rise to behaviors of avoidance. the hypochondria, for example, is a phobia to suffer serious illnesses, exaggerating some symptoms which may not have ”added the expert.

Nevertheless, the Lugo psychiatrist concluded his presentation by claiming that mental illness is also deeply stigmatizing. “H. Stuart, one of the world most renowned psychiatrists, said in 2008 that people with mental illnesses are among the most stigmatized groups in society”, adds Dr. Paz.

That’s why the WPA in 1996, having been recognized especially burdensome load of stigmatization associated with schizophrenia, global program anti-estigma, begins with its programme Open the Doors ”. The section was created in 2005, stigma and Mental Health ”, with the objective of reducing the stigma and discrimination caused by mental illness disability in general. Finally, last November signed the Oviedo Declaration against discrimination and stigma towards people with mental illness, during the 15th National Congress of Psychiatry.

Dr. Paz concludes by ensuring that, if the medium has been able to influence the genesis and development of some mental illness, should be influencing this environment for its treatment. Acceptance of the mentally ill in the fight against stigmatization is the necessary first step to recover ”, ends the expert.