Stigma in the South Asian community
“Mental health problems are common and affect people from all walks of life and all communities across England including the South Asian community. This is why I am supporting Time to Change's work in this area. Meera Syal
Research carried out by Time to Change partner, Rethink Mental Illness into attitudes towards mental illness in the South Asian community shows that mental illness is a taboo subject for the South Asian community in Harrow as it is for the population as a whole. However it explores some atittudes specific to the South Asian community. These key issues are:
- Shame, or sharam, fear and secrecy surround mental illness
- The causes of mental health problems are often misunderstood
- The family can be both caring and isolating
- Social pressure to conform
- People with mental health problems are not valued
- Marriage prospects can be damaged
Following this report leaflets have been created to address the key findings. The leaflets are available in Gujarati and Tamil translations. Whilst these are not available to order in the online shop at present a downloadable pdf is available here. If you are interested in ordering a large number of leaflets please email campaigns@time-to-change.org.uk
Leaflet – Gujarati
Leaflet - Tamil
What next?
The report forms the basis of a pilot project that is taking place in Harrow in Summer 2011. For more information on the Harrow project follow this link.
Real people
Read about the experiences of Selina & Sue and Chandulal by following these links and watch Nina and Anaar talk about their experiences of mental health problems below.
Need support?
If you are experiencing mental health problems or need urgent support, there are lots of places you can go for help.
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