The bare, derelict walls of a mental asylum send a wave of unrest through the kids who cower on the living room couch. The camera pans out to highlight the depravity in the coming scene. Patients scream through thick metal bars with bloodshot eyes that stare into nothingness. They are dressed in nothing but ragged clothes and desperation, which paints a bleak picture for many individuals sitting on the other side of the screen, who look at these images with growing unrest. This is a prime example of how the media demonizes people with mental illness, perpetrating the concept of “us versus them.” This is damaging to the public’s view of people with mental illness, as it promotes ignorance and stereotypes in place of reality and facts. Forty-two point five million American adults have some sort of mental illness and when we treat them like they are crazy or create divides within our society, we weaken ourselves. Sadly, the stigma against people with psychological disorders can cause them to be deterred from seeking treatment.

Last year, I was sitting in my school’s cafeteria when I had a very eye-opening disagreement with a friend. We were talking about a television series which featured a mental hospital when she said, “People in mental hospitals scare me. They’re all violent, like psychos and creeps!” Later, I found out the reason behind her prejudice against people with mental illness. When asked about the extent of knowledge she possessed towards the provision and care provided at local mental hospitals, she lacked an adequate response. Her excuse was that the only source of information she had seen about this topic was in the latest horror movies and television shows.

I strongly disagreed with my friend. I told her that I believed she lacked sufficient evidence to prove such a generalization as true. In addition, I found her assertion to be false in relation to the statement that said people with mental illnesses are more inclined to be violent. In fact, extensive research suggests that people with mental illnesses are more likely to be victims than perpetrators of violence, with factors like substance abuse, history of violence and demographic variables playing larger roles. She didn’t want to hear the facts behind why I believed I was right, brushing off my rebuttals with, “People are just too sensitive these days. The media doesn’t really have that much to do with crazy people.”

I understood where she was coming from. When I stepped into her shoes, I realized that not everyone was familiar with mental illness and its effects. Perhaps the reason behind her ignorance was the lack of public education on that topic or the trivialization of teen mental illness in the modern media, but either way, the importance of listening to each other’s opinion and educating those who haven’t had our same experiences became very clear to me. She had a fear of the unknown. She was afraid of this certain group of people because she did not understand them. Looking back, if I had taken more time to help teach her about the detrimental effects her view had caused on society, she might have been able to see things from my perspective.

In conclusion, I have learned a lot from this experience. When I had empathy for my friend, I was no longer angry at her for disagreeing with me. Instead, I was understanding. She wasn’t trying to be malicious, but she was blinded by ignorance. This newfound, empathetic approach to situations we dislike or have a hard trouble handling makes communication smoother. Empathy is important for our schools and communities because it teaches us the importance of standing in another person’s shoes.