I think that there is so much stigma around mental illnesses because many people don’t understand what to do if they or someone they know has a mental illness. For so many years we were always told that if there was something wrong with someone metally then they were strange/different and not in a good way. Many people like to be able to see something that is brocken or wrong liike with a brocken bone, some mental illnesses you can’t physically see that anything is wrong so people think that they’re fine or faking it when in reality they aren’t. Factors that contribute to self’stigma include the environment that you grow up in, many people are taught that if you have a mental illness then you are weak and or crazy. Even the society aroudn those people with mental illnesses, many movies or TV shows depict people with mental illnesses to be over the top or crazy or even being less than others because there is something wrong, they are the outcast of the town if there is something mentally wrong when in reality if they get the right care then they can live a normal life just like anyone else. 

A person’s culture can impact their response to mental illness because some cultures think that admitting you have a mental illness means you are weak and shouldn’t be talked about because you are an embarrassment to the family. Another impact that culture has is that some cultures have a higher prevalence of having a mental illness because of thier situation that they were brough up in. Even someone’s religion/spirituality can have an impact on a person’s idea of wellness and illness. Some religions believe that using holistic means of medicine can get ride of the bad spirits around a person when really they have a mental illness that needs different means of treating. Some religions/ spiritualities praise the idea of having a healthy mind and body so there is support for those with mental illness which is a good thing. Wellness is a big concept in many religions which they promote so those with mental illnesses can feel like they belong and find/get the help that they need.