By Claire //
“The Institute of Mental Health”
What comes to mind when you see those words?
Also known as “IMH”, it is not the first name that’s been given to Singapore’s sole psychiatric hospital. Its first name, in 1841, was ‘The Insane Hospital’. That was followed by ‘The New Lunatic Asylum’ in 1887, ‘The Mental Hospital’ in 1928, and ‘Woodbridge Hospital’ in 1951. It received its present name in 1993.
With the words ‘insane’, ‘lunatic’ and ‘mental’, now come negative associations such as fear and disgust. However, these same words were once non-taboo. Our prejudicial attitudes have corrupted the originally neutral meaning of these words. Our psychiatric hospital remains one entrenched in stigma no matter what name has been attached to it.
In a mental health talk I once attended, one of the speakers suggested renaming IMH to ‘National Wellness Centre’. At first, I thought it sounded like a good way to change our perception of the institution. However, upon deeper thinking, I realised that the solution might not be so simple. The success of this proposed name, ‘National Wellness Centre’, would depend on whether the positive connotation of the word ‘wellness’ can overpower the initial prejudices associated with the hospital. If not, in the worst case, the word ‘wellness’ would soon become a taboo, just as how using the word ‘special’ to describe a person with learning disabilities has become an insult.
Words are never the problem. It is the intended meaning when we use these words that corrupt them.
It is also for this reason that euphemisms do not work. By using a euphemism, we imply that the commonly known and used term is a taboo. For example, by using the term ‘differently abled’ instead of ‘disabled’. To me, there is nothing bad about saying that someone is disabled; it is simply a fact.
IMH, being the sole psychiatric institution in the country, has to bear the full brunt of criticism from the public, criticism often heavily enshrouded with stigma. Psychiatry is not perfect, and we only have one psychiatric hospital, but for now they’re all we’ve got, and they’re doing the best they can.
At the end of the day, words mean nothing. Words are merely containers for its associated meanings. If we continue to think that changing the name of something can help to shake off stigma, we will soon run out of words. The solution to ending the stigma of mental illness, and of anything for that matter, is education and changing our attitudes towards the ill and disabled.
Claire is a 19-year-old psychology diploma student who struggles with depression and OCD. She hopes to use her experiences and voice to inspire others, as well as to end the stigma surrounding mental illness.
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