Millions of Romanians are forced to live their suffering in silence with the risk of stigma. As doctors say, but also ordinary people, having mental disorders is a real nightmare in our country because there are still medieval concepts about these diseases and patients are marginalized.
Patients with mental disorders are marginalized by society PHOTO Adevărul
Millions of Romanians suffer from mental disorders or illnesses, from depression to serious conditions such as schizophrenia or bipolar syndrome. More precisely, according to the statistics of 2023, approximately 6 million Romanians have a mental condition. And their number is increasing in recent years.
Stress, worrying about tomorrow, poverty and alcohol abuse, in addition to genetic factors, are the main causes that lead to these pathologies. Some people who struggle with mental illnesses keep them hidden or don’t recognize them. And the reason is mainly related to the attitude of the Romanian society towards people with mental illnesses, but also to the prejudices towards them existing in the mentality of the Romanians. Nor does the Romanian state do enough to encourage the early detection of conditions, to track their evolution after they leave the supervision of doctors, and above all, it does not educate the population about mental disorders and the support that the community should provide for the integration of these people.
“Eastern Europe faces a much higher esteem towards the psychiatric patient”
Psychiatrist Emil Panțiru, from the current practice at the Psychiatry Department of the “Mavromati” County Hospital, says that in Eastern Europe there is a problem regarding society’s perception of those with mental disorders. They are viewed with distrust, avoided, marginalized, and even their rights are violated .
Society’s general perception and mindsets also influence those who suffer from these disorders. For example, they feel inferior and withdraw from society. “Unfortunately, Eastern Europe faces a much greater stigma towards the psychiatric patient. It must be taken into account that stigma has a double origin in the mental patient. On the one hand, the population. Certain rights are not respected, they are stigmatized. But it is also about self-stigma that is found many times. Patients feel inferior to others simply because they have a mental illness”says Emil Panțiru.
Many times, if it is found that they have a history of psychiatric treatment or are affected by a psychiatric illness, even if well kept under control, many Romanians end up being avoided by employers, citing different reasons, or are avoided within social groups. They are perceived with fear and somehow accusatory, as if they are to blame for what happens to them. “The part of getting out of the shame, out of the stigma is still very pressing, there are people who do not accept, although they recognize the symptoms of the disease, but they do not accept that they could receive a psychiatric stamp or a diagnosis of mental illness”, says psychiatrist Gabriel Diaconu, in a statement for Digi24.
“His head, pass him on”
A teacher from Botoșani, who wished to remain anonymous, gives us an image of the perception of a part of Romanian society towards people with mental disorders. Including those with higher education. He even tells us about teachers with behavioral problems, who, at best, pass the psychological tests without any recommendation, but are judged around the corner, both by colleagues and by students. “It’s a big problem with people who have behavioral and possibly mental disorders. Lately I also understood that depression is not such an unusual thing. I went through something like that when my grandfather died. I was lucky to have support at home. I have been teaching since 2005 and have been to several schools. I have seen teachers visibly affected by depression, for example. They are all afraid to admit it. They are afraid of being kicked out, of being marginalized, of being viewed with suspicion. In many situations I have seen people who were known to be receiving treatment for various mental problems. He was a neighbor on the block. Many refused to talk to him, on the principle of “head him, pass him on”. Although the man was perfectly functional“, says the man from Botošan.
In addition, he observed how people who are unlucky enough to develop a mental health problem, including transient depression, are effectively shunned, including by family. “I find this thing terrible. To end up with no support left, as if you’ve done something bad. I remember that after the birth of the child, the wife sat on some groups for mothers. On one topic he showed me how a woman who asked for advice on how to deal with a depressed husband was advised by most people to divorce. It was incredible. That is, instead of being supported, helped to overcome the moment, he was actually being driven away. You left that man with nothing. And with a broken soul and without a family. And you wonder why some end up killing themselves. They are effectively abandoned by others. On the principle >”adds the teacher.
The silent suffering
Precisely because of the stigma and problems of avoidance in society and even in the family, many Romanians who feel that they are facing mental problems, especially if they are somehow milder, try to hide them as much as they can. Especially the men. In many cases, in Romanian society, being a man affected by depression is a sign of weakness, of invalidating masculinity. “When they feel they have a problem, especially depression, women go to the doctor more often than men. That’s because it’s about stigma. It’s harder for a man to accept that he has a depressive problem, it’s embarrassing for him, it’s harder to accept that he needs hospitalization or medication, for example. Ladies are more open. Unfortunately, we cannot know that there are more depressives of the order of ladies or gentlemen”says doctor Emil Panțiru.
Due to suffering in silence, problems can worsen, leading to serious situations. Including suicide. In many cases, it all starts with one or more suicide attempts. “It is like an alarm signal that must be treated with the utmost seriousness. Unfortunately, in our country, these people do not enjoy support and understanding in society“, adds the psychiatrist.
