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Understanding Children and Young People’s Mental Health

Religious beliefs may sometimes lead people to believe that their God may punish
them in some way for showing symptoms of mental ill health and being diagnosed
with a particular condition. Some beliefs and practices may appear disturbed to
people from different cultures or to health professionals and this can affect the
diagnosis a person receives.

For example, if an individual said they heard the voice of their dead ancestors or
reported that they had been abducted by aliens, the reaction and judgements of
others, including health professionals, may differ depending on the country they live
in. If a mental health practitioner and their patient come from different cultures and
backgrounds, it can occasionally be difficult to distinguish between a different cultural
way of thinking and behaving and a mental health condition.

Some research carried out in North West London in 2010 explored attitudes
towards mental illness in the South Asian communities there. The report, produced
in November that year, found that there were deeply rooted misunderstandings of
mental ill health that had passed through generations. There was no doubt that
people had experienced stigma and discrimination as a result of mental ill health
and several possible explanations for this were revealed by the research.

‘They have a fixed psychology, [it’s] how they’ve been raised, how the community
behaves. You do not discuss anything around mental illness because it’s a
no-go area.’

‘The close family try to keep it within closed doors; they don’t really want
the wider community to know about it. I think they feel it’s something to be
ashamed of.’

‘People are afraid [of mental ill health], they are afraid they might become
contaminated or tarnished with the same brush.’

‘They think there is no need to go to the doctor – the doctor won’t do anything.’

Source: Family Matters: A report into attitudes towards mental health
problems in the South Asian community in Harrow, North West
London: November 2010

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